Dear CCI Friends,

The loud and consistent narrative that underpins the Ukrainian/Western position on the war in Ukraine is that it is, and was from the beginning, a totally ‘unprovoked,’ naked act of aggression undertaken by a deranged dictator intent on subjugating all of Ukraine and, eventually, all of Europe.  Point to the extensive historical record that exposes the simple-minded nonsense of that position and you will be cast out of polite society and labeled a ‘Putin puppet’ – or worse.

But longtime legacy news correspondent Stephen Kinzer has done just that in his book “BOILING POINT; How America Brought War to Ukraine.” After pointing out that maintaining insistence on the ‘unprovoked’ label means never negotiating a decent ending to this war – because how can anyone be expected to negotiate with a homicidal maniac? – he sets out the long list of provocations that led to this war and challenges us to acknowledge them.   His research is backed up by extensive documentation and his conclusions difficult to refute.  We hope you will find a copy of the book and keep it as a reference guide.

CCI board member Charles T. Heberle, III, Colonel, US Army, Ret., was at NATO headquarters in 1992 and observed with dismay how, subsequently, the West’s willingness to renege on promises made then were among the earliest ‘provocations’ that have brought us to the tragedy playing out in Ukraine today:  “As a person with first hand knowledge of the agreement about NATO (not to move ‘one inch’ eastward) that got them to fold the USSR without firing a shot, something unprecedented in world history that they get no credit for . . . (I believe) Abraham Lincoln and George C. Marshall were right.  If you want to defeat your enemy, make him your friend.  We should have done that in 1992.  It’s not too late to give it another try.”

Stephen Kinzer – Review of “Boiling Point” 

https://glenndiesen.substack.com/p/stephen-kinzer-how-america-brought

For more on the deadly consequences of promoting grotesque lies please see:

Glenn Diesen – “When Reporting On Ukrainian Victims Becomes ‘Russian Propaganda'”

“The argument being made is that the popular will and suffering of Ukrainians is denounced as “Russian propaganda” if it undermines the narratives required to continue the war.”

https://glenndiesen.substack.com/p/when-reporting-on-ukrainian-victims

As always, we look forward to your comments.

The Center for Citizen  Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy have one thing in common:  both were democratically elected on promises they made to their supporters to stop a war in Ukraine that started in 2014.  Neither man has followed through.  Why?

Both men have the authority to end the fighting and their voters gave them clear mandates that, if we are to believe the polls, are still valid today – even in Ukraine.  Did they lie to the voters or, once elected and possessing authority, did they lack the power?

The latter possibility is by far the more worrisome.  Please consider the views of two highly respected and experienced analysts on the subject:

Larry Johnson:  Trump Talks Peace, CIA Fuels A War

“Through the CIA, it [the US] is fighting Russia. This has been the agency’s war for more than a decade.”

https://larrycjohnson.substack.com/p/trump-talks-peace-while-the-cia-is

Alastair Crooke:  Reviewing “The Atlantic” magazine, issue of 23 October 

“..the article emphasises that the CIA is in ‘the lead’ on Ukraine and that its paramilitary wing, the Covert Action wing, is thrilled at being so busy.”

https://conflictsforum.substack.com/p/trump-makes-nice-with-moscow-as-cia

Where, in the two democracies involved, does the ‘will of the people’ come into play?  Is it even relevant?

The Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

In recent months we have shared a number of Prof. Glenn Diesen’s videos featuring a range of independent analysts, intelligence experts, former ambassadors and diplomats, all of whom have exceptional experience in Eastern European and Russian/US/Ukrainian geopolitical affairs.  We have come to respect his work and appreciate his integrity greatly.

Given his academic stature and his on-the-ground experience (see AI), the ordeal he is experiencing from the Norwegian ‘establishment’ (elite, globalist, EU univoice?) is beyond belief – almost.  Please see his article below for the complete picture and let us know what you think of the new normal, so-called ‘liberalism’ that condemns free speech and critical thinking.

Glenn Diesen – On Being Cancelled

https://glenndiesen.substack.com/p/the-ongoing-cancellation-campaign

Then please see his recent talk with former US Ambassador Chas Freeman, another voice for sanity and reason, and an example of why CCI is happy to promote both of their voices.

Glenn Diesen, Ambassador Chas Freeman:  “Ideology Divorced From Reality”

“No Evidence That The Europeans Are Prepared to Make Peace”

https://glenndiesen.substack.com/p/chas-freeman-european-leaders-are

In peace,
The Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

There is some encouraging talk of the possibility of a tentative move in the direction of beginning negotiations aimed at stopping the war in Ukraine.  You will note the vagueness in that sentence. It mirrors the vagueness of what we know for certain of what is going on between the EU, NATO, Ukraine, and the United States as they inch their way toward the possibility of talking about peace.  It is disturbing that we have no word from Russia on all of this talk, considering its leading role in the drama playing out in Ukraine, but we can appreciate the importance of first steps.

Fortunately, good minds are at work on how to interpret what is going on and we are offering a selection for your review.  Please give us your thoughts on the process.

Jeffrey Sachs – A Proposed Settlement Plan

“…addresses the causes of the war rather than only its symptoms.”

https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/framework-for-peace-in-ukraine

Ian Proud – The Sach’s Plan Will Be A Bitter Pill

    It takes NATO off the table and makes Ukraine a neutral state.  Acceptable?

https://thepeacemonger.substack.com/p/professor-jeffrey-sachs-plan-to-end

Leon Vermeulen – Oslo Brought Ukraine and Europe to the White House Plan

     Now what?

https://leonvermeulen.substack.com/p/oslo-did-not-create-a-peace-process

There is much to digest here, friends, and we must acknowledge that so far everything we ‘know’ is speculation.  Is the Sach’s plan a reasonable, acceptable, beginning  of a path to a negotiated end to the killing and destruction?

Best wishes to you all for peace in these dark times.

The Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

There has never been a time when the need for critical thinking was more important.  Without it, without paying close attention to what is going on around us and searching diligently for the truth in the miasma of propaganda that surrounds us, we are at risk of being led to our destruction.

At the same time, the movement to stop the free flow of information, discussion, analysis, and opinion, the necessary ingredients for the exercise of critical thinking, from those who disagree with the accepted narrative of the West has also never been greater, with Europe and Great Britain leading the repression.

Please consider the following discussions with Mary Dejevsky, a respected establishment British journalist with decades of experience in Russia and the US who now finds herself no longer part of the ‘in crowd’ for daring to consider Russia’s position in Ukraine.

Interview with Tom Switzer:  Silencing of Dissent

With Ian Proud and Steve Jermyn:  “Boris Johnson Must Answer for Ukraine’s Destruction”

And another voice of reason on the same topic, the repression of dissent.

Shane Fitzgerald:  “War With Russia Is Not Inevitable”

“Let us remember it is never history’s good guys who bang the war drums the hardest.”

https://truthandbalance22.substack.com/p/war-with-russia-is-not-inevitable

Best wishes to all in the CCI community.  In these dark and dismal times it is a pleasure and a relief to know you are there.

The Directors
The Center for Citizen Initiatives