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Bringing Russian and American citizens together in Peace since 1983.

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Second Thoughts About U.S. Policy Toward Russia?

March 1, 2019

Dear CCI Friends,

At last a decades-long traditional U.S.-oriented Russia analyst and professor, Dr. Angela Stent, is admitting to second thoughts about America’s policies toward Russia, including what Russia hoped for and needed after the USSR imploded.  She also gives Putin a break from the norm of demonizing, and sees him as a leader who understands what Russians need and respect. After Dr. Stent’s use of “disruptive” twice (to please the powers that be?), the remainder of the article below is quite perceptive and straight forward.

It’s interesting to me that it is a woman Russia specialist who is now ready to admit that significant mistakes were made by the U.S. in its treatment of Russia. Perhaps others in her league have also backtracked and I missed them? If so, please let me know. With this Boston PBS interview, Stent may be opening the door whereby other American professionals will choose to be more open regarding Russia/Putin topics.  Many went along with the “party line” during these years since 2000 in order to keep their positions. This is understandable. Hopefully this piece will make others feel safe to be more above board in the future. If so, she has provided a much needed example. Read the following interview and let us know what you think.

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Mikhail Gorbachev: A Nuclear Arms Race Will Produce No Winners

February 15, 2019

Despite everything, it is still in our power to avoid nuclear confrontation.

February 14, 2019
By Mikhail Gorbachev
Kirill Zykov / Moskva News Agency

Mikhail Gorbachev (Kirill Zykov / Moskva News Agency)

The fate of the INF treaty has politicians and ordinary people worried on every continent. I am also concerned, and not only because I signed that treaty with former U.S. President Ronald Reagan in Dec. 1987. These events are yet another manifestation of the dangerous and destructive trends in world politics facing us today.

The main idea guiding us on the path to signing the original treaty was expressed in a joint statement with the United States, adopted at our first meeting in Geneva: “A nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought.”

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The U.S. and Russia Are Sleepwalking Toward Nuclear Disaster

February 14, 2019

Dear CCI Friends,

Politico issued a dire warning on February 1 from reputable American specialists who were central to tamping down the Nuclear Arms Race in the 1980s. Will their message get out to mainstream Americans this time? And will the current Congress be willing to address this frightening issue?

It’s up to people like us to demand that our Congress members heed this final ultimatum and inform our friends and colleagues how close we may be to nuclear obliteration.

Please do your part! Send this to as many persons as you can in case it’s not dealt with by mainstream media. There can’t be too many voices on this issue and every voice counts!

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(Video) CCI’s Diplomacy Efforts in 2018 & 2019

January 28, 2019

Dear Friends of CCI,

We’ve sent out quite a lot of information about our September 2018 trip to Russia. It was a “first-of-its-kind” trip. It exceeded our original goals––and it whets our intentions to be more daring with 2019’s diplomacy efforts!

Thankfully, we were able to get six of our 25 travelers together in the Bay Area for a video to share their perceptions of the experience now that they have had time to consider the impact of the trip. Enjoy the frank discussions of their “take-aways” in the YouTube video below.

CCI’s 2019 trip coming up will be even more expansive and dramatic. In all likelihood the trip dates will be May 30 to June 15. We are waiting to learn if new “Experts” invited to interact with us can work with these dates.

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(Video) Russian Journalist Dimitri Babich Speaks to CCI Group

January 24, 2019

Dear CCI Friends,

I want to share with you my favorite young news journalist in Moscow, Dmitri (Dima) Babich. He is one of our “CCI Experts.” I’ve known Dima a long, long time.  He is very fond of America, speaks flawless English and always finds something light-hearted to say regardless of how difficult the situation is between Washington, D.C. and Moscow.  We break into gales of laughter with his humor … or on rare occasion we experience a moment of pathos with him.

One such moment came with a CCI group in 2017. One traveler asked, “How come Russians are so good to us wherever we go across your country, even when the relationship between our countries is so dire?”  Silence fell over the room. Seemingly stunned for a moment, Dima quietly uttered his truth, “You know we have always had a love affair with America and Americans. From the very beginning this was so. And the remnants are still alive in our society and come out when people like you appear on our streets or in meetings.”  His words fell on the group like a blanket of poignancy.

In the video below, Dima seemed, for the first time, to try to educate us Americans about how it feels to be in his shoes …. in ordinary Russians shoes.  Russians read our U.S. news on the Internet and keep up with much of what is going on in our country and their own. Russians on the whole are considerably better informed than most Americans. Many have English training in their backgrounds. Today even their metro stops are announced in Russian and in English. Presently, they are more worried about the future than are we. Our NATO troops and weapons are just minutes from Moscow and St. Petersburg. How would we feel if Russian troops were in the state next to ours?

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