Dear CCI Friends and Colleagues,

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth gave a brief presentation  in the oval office recently where he spoke of renaming the Department of Defence. Henceforth, it is to be the Department of War.  Mr. Hegseth enthusiastically endorsed the name change and, in truth, offensive as it may seem, his honesty is welcome.  We may now officially drop any illusions we might have had that our military consists of citizen soldiers with a duty to defend the USA.  They are now officially acknowledged as global ‘war fighters.’  

Further, Hegseth defines the purpose of his department as “maximum lethality, minimum tepid legality.”  Presumably he wants us to join him and celebrate backsliding into barbarity.  Let us consider the consequences. 

Most of us who favor peace prefer the rule of law to the ruthlessness of war when it comes to dispute resolution. Ellen Tracy, who traveled to Russia with CCI in 2016, writes of the critical importance of respect for the law in the article below.  Her observations and analysis are insightful, beautifully articulate and steeped in history. 

“The Importance of International Law to Human Survival”

https://www.counterpunch.org/2022/06/03/war-crimes-from-nuremberg-to-ukraine/

I have just recently made Ellen’s acquaintance, thanks to the internet, and I am very happy to reprint her piece.  I  hope you will give it your thoughtful attention.  

Sincerely,
Paula Day
Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI friends and colleagues, 

We would like to bring to your attention an interview of Ambassador Jack Matlock which aired a few days ago. It is entitled “How Western leaders became ideological war criminals” 

(246) Amb. Jack Matlock: Western Leaders Became Ideological “War Criminals” – YouTube

Ambassador Matlock was US Ambassador to the Soviet Union when the Cold War ended in 1989, and also when the Soviet Union broke up in 1991. His historical views are worth reading in the context of the special military operation by Russia in 2022. Ambassador Matlock takes exception to the comment that this is a war ‘that Putin started’. Mr Matlock believes that this is a war that the West started, and he even calls the Western leaders ‘ideological war criminals’. 

Whether we agree with Ambassador Matlock or not, we would urge you to take a few minutes of your time to see what Ambassador Matlock has to say. It may not change your mind, but is still worth listening to. The Western media does not seem to make space or time for experienced diplomats like Jack Matlock or Chas Freeman. This is our misfortune as it leads to public perceptions that are not fully informed about the background to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.  

We would welcome your views on this interview if you have the chance to see it. 

Sincerely,
Krishen Mehta, Director
Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

In honor of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II we are happy to circulate this article by Vijay Prashad, “Against Resurgent Militarism.”  When considering the horrors of the wars of the 20th century, shouldn’t we all refuse to answer the call of the constant drumbeat for more and more war?

https://consortiumnews.com/2025/08/27/vijay-prashad-against-resurgent-militarism/

We’re also happy to bring you a new voice (new to us!) responding to the current war in Ukraine.  Mark Lesseraux is a “singer/songwriter/socio-political columnist” from Brooklyn.  Please let us know your thoughts on his thoughts.

https://www.pressenza.com/2025/08/the-proxy-war-in-ukraine-for-western-dummies/

Best regards to all,
Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

Two subjects, that may at first seem unrelated, force us to contemplate, again, the nature of reality: 

Is Vladimir Putin guilty of kidnapping Ukrainian children as he stands convicted by the International Criminal Court? Or is he a humanitarian who rescued Ukrainian children from an active war zone and took them to safety, as the Russians claim?

Can we determine the truth, the reality, of this situation or is our ability to think critically corrupted by our inclination to take sides and our willingness to accept the ‘truth’ of anything that supports our side?

Patrick Lawrence has launched a two-part series to explore the war on truth, in this case the truth of the matter concerning the Ukrainian children.

“…propaganda by way of omission, an insidious and highly effective technique, and propaganda by way of disinformation—the less subtle strategy.” 

https://thefloutist.substack.com/p/those-russian-kidnappers?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=112164&post_id=171664840&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=false&r=2ofpf2&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

On the homefront, independent investigative journalist John Solomon describes his time in the trenches in the context of Russiagate.  His conclusions, if correct, are deeply disturbing for all Americans.  

“After 9 Years of Investigation, Here’s What I Uncovered”

Please give us your thoughts.

(Note to our Russian friends:  our apologies if the youtube video is not available to you.) 

With thanks,
The Directors
Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

How do we make sense of the events of the past week?  Was the Trump/Putin summit in Alaska a victory for the return of diplomatic relations between the US and Russia – and perhaps a promising first step towards peace in Ukraine?  Or was the summit trumped (sorry!) by the full court press put on by Zelensky and the Europeans in a bid to keep the war going ‘as long as it takes’ (to do what, we might ask)?

Or were the events merely more of the drama, the optics as they say, of red carpets, smiles and handshakes, military fly-overs, the  leaders of Europe posed as supplicants before the wizard of Washington?

The mainstream media in the US and in Russia give us a taste of all the trendy interpretations flowing from those events and no doubt you have already absorbed much of it.  For an analysis  of what these sorts  of summits or peace talks should accomplish, given what we know of what is happening in Ukraine, we are suggesting this article by Professor Paul Robinson at the University of Ottawa.  It was written just before the Trump/Putin meeting and it is as sound as anything we’ve seen  on the subject since. 

“If Trump Truly Wishes to End the War, Previous Unworkable Approaches Must Finally be Abandoned…”

https://landmarksmag.substack.com/p/what-trump-needs-to-do-at-the-alaska

And for a quick overview by our favorite former CIA analyst, please see:

“Trump & the Seven Dwarfs”

“The shared, overriding objective to improve bilateral ties came through clearly both at the summit on Friday and at the “March of the Gnomes” on Monday when seven European leaders arrived at the White House to back Volodymyr Zelensky (no offense to garden gnomes – or dwarfs).”

Thanks to Ray for a laugh; and to all of you, for taking the time to give us your feedback on these momentous happenings, our deepest appreciation.

Sincerely,
The Center for Citizen Initiatives