Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukrainian parliament's human rights commissioner, told the Espresso television channel that the two sides had "proceeded to coordinate the last details" of the operation. Talks with the Russian side are taking place daily, he said.
"I cannot tell you many details, but I will say this: we have, in my view, advanced as far as possible," Lubinets said.
Residents are to be taken not merely out of the city but delivered directly "to territory controlled by the Ukrainian government," he said. The evacuation is also planned from six nearby settlements.
Ukrainian authorities estimate that about 6,000 civilians may remain in the area, including up to 200 children. They put the population of Oleshky itself at 2,000.
The city, known in Russian as Alyoshky, has been under Russian occupation since 2022. By the autumn the situation there had become severe: no electricity, water or gas, no ambulance service and no working shops. Residents are surviving on subsistence farming.
In late September, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said there was famine in Oleshky. Lubinets has called the situation a "humanitarian catastrophe."
Ukraine has accused Russia of deliberately blockading the city and of derailing talks on organizing a humanitarian corridor. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov acknowledged that the situation in Oleshky was "critical" but blamed Ukraine for obstructing the supply of food and medicine.
On October 16, Pope Leo XIV and Vladimir Putin discussed the situation in Oleshky by telephone. The pontiff "expressed deep concern over the grave situation in the city of Oleshky" and called for a ceasefire. Putin placed responsibility for the humanitarian crisis on the Ukrainian authorities.