Dear CCI Friends,

The news from Europe is not good and we can only watch in disbelief.  Here are the observations on the matter from two honest journalist observers.  

We are familiar with Scott Ritter’s work and take his views seriously:  “The situation today is eerily reminiscent of the months leading up to August 1914…”

“Give Peace A Chance”

“…are we serious about actually giving peace a chance, or are we simply going to give lip service to a cause while being frog-marched by the powers that be toward a destiny we all can see, but refuse to acknowledge?”

https://scottritter.substack.com/p/give-peace-a-chance-9dc

Ben Aris is a British journalist who began reporting from Russia in 1993.  He has developed an expertise in Eastern European geopolitics we believe deserves our attention.  Please consider:

Is Russia Really Planning to Attack Europe?

“More sober analysis warns that hyping the threat runs the danger of starting a war that no one intended to fight in the first place.”

https://bneeditor.substack.com/p/is-europe-talking-itself-into-war

For your consideration.

The Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

Recently there has been another flurry of ‘official’ US delegations to Russia:  Kuchner, Witkoff and Ratcliffe.  We’ve not seen any resultant analysis or explanations of these visits nor has there been any visible official outcome.

There has also been a recent visit by a separate group of Americans, among them John Meirsheimer and Larry Johnson, who are speaking freely of what they saw, who they talked to and how they interpreted their encounters.  

Please consider their contribution to our understanding of the current situation:

Larry Johnson:  Dispatch from Moscow

https://larrycjohnson.substack.com/p/dispatch-from-moscow-the-collapse

Prof. John Meirsheimer:  The Russia I Saw

The Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

We are deluged with news and analysis of the war in Ukraine and with constant, and contrary, speculation on who will ‘win.’  There is little being said about what comes after the tragedy ends and the major players have left the stage.

Professor Nicolai Petro has decades of experience in observing and analyzing the countries and he has given the matter serious thought.  In the interview below he focuses our attention on the possibilities for a post-war Ukraine.  Could it possibly be a country purged of both Russophobia and Russophilia, the divisions that brought the present disaster?  Petro’s deep assessment of the options for the future is thoughtful and thought provoking.  

Please give us your thoughts.

What Is A ‘True’ Ukrainian?

The war has not made the answer to this essential question of Ukrainian identity any easier.

https://glenndiesen.substack.com/p/nicolai-petro-why-the-west-fears

The Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

The NATO war in Ukraine is not in the future according to Glenn Diesen;  it has been with us for years.  Please read and give us your thoughts.

” Acknowledging NATO’s involvement in this war is necessary to begin negotiations……..”

NATO’s War in Ukraine – Glenn Diesen’s Substack

The Center for Citizen Initiatives

Dear CCI Friends,

Kit Klarenberg’s article on Ukraine’s ‘memory laws’ is hard to believe.  If any of our CCI followers in Ukraine can throw any more light on the subject he explores below, please get in touch.

“Ukraine’s Ultranationalist War on History”

“….the weaponization of law in the service of memory politics…”

https://www.kitklarenberg.com/p/ukraines-ultranationalist-war-on

At the same time, please consider the following from Professor Glenn Diesen, originally published in Norway in 2023.  It is an elegant recitation of the facts and events leading up to the Russian march into Ukraine in 2022 – a freshener, should anyone need one, for our memories today.  However, there is one detail in Diesen’s analysis that is no longer accurate. He describes the scene in 2023 between Ukraine, Russia and the ‘West’ as a revival of the Cold War. We see nothing ‘cold’ in the scenario we find ourselves in today.

“NATO’s War in Ukraine”

“In 1994, even President Clinton warned that NATO expansion could destabilize Europe, as drawing a new line between East and West could create a self-fulfilling prophecy of future confrontation. When Clinton changed his mind, his Secretary of Defense, William Perry, considered resigning in protest. Perry claims that those pushing for NATO expansion acknowledged that it would destroy peace with Russia, but did not believe it mattered because Russia was weak, and their attitude was essentially: “Who cares what they think?”

https://glenndiesen.substack.com/p/natos-war-in-ukraine

A special Thank You! to all of our CCI friends for being with us in these dark times.

The Center for Citizen Initiatives