4/27/2025

My Dear Friend & POTUS, DJT,

            What do you know about the Cossacks? I didn’t know much about them myself until I looked them up this AM to learn more about Zaporizhzhia, one of the cities that VOZ & VVP are fighting over. Your guy, Steve Witcoff (SCW), had trouble recalling its name in his interview with Fox on Friday when he repeated VVP’s claim that residents of the five disputed territories had voted to be part of Russia.

            BTW, SCW’s difficulty keeping track of things demonstrates that he has way too much on his plate. No one can be expected to make peace in Gaza & Ukraine while also coming up with a nuclear deal for Iran, especially when brand new to the world of diplomacy. He may be your best bud & a truly decent human being, but he’s not a miracle worker. Please offer him some help from some experienced folks who can help him use his skills in negotiating real estate deals in this new domain of peace-making.

            I ask about the Cossacks, because those are the folks who inhabit the area around the Dnieper River, who VVP claims want to be Russian. I just learned that back in the day, the Cossacks were used by the Tzars as military experts, in return for getting tax-free land. They were mercenaries in the truest sense, equipping themselves & staying fit, but not at all “loyal to the Tzar,” preferring democracy, self-rule & independence to autocracy.

            Given this history, you can imagine why the people of Zaporizhzhia were shocked that SCW believed VVP’s claim that they wanted to be part of Russia. SCW might want to reach out to Serhii Mykolayovych Plokhy at Harvard for the low down on the Cossacks.

            I agree with the “truth” that you shared yesterday that “Too many people are dying!!!” As you put your folks to work ending wars, please send someone to Southeast Asia. According to Reuters, “172 attacks have occurred since the junta agreed to a ceasefire, 73 of them in areas devastated by the earthquake. Between April 2 & 18, 105 people were killed by junta aerial attacks.”

            It would also be good to recognize the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. While you might have some reservations about your choice to avoid fighting in it, acknowledging the devastation it caused will help us prevent conflicts like it in the future.

            WINTA,

            BYBS,