Well, color me gobsmacked!

I just read that Melania Trump has pulled off the diplomatic coup of the year. And she hasn’t once suggested that she should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

But what has she done — she, who normally keeps such a low profile and never becomes involved in politics? Well, it seems that, just before her husband (you know who I mean) left for his meeting in Alaska with Vladimir Putin in August, she slipped him a letter addressed to Putin, to be hand-delivered.

But this was not some back-room hanky-panky. This was an impassioned plea, through an “open channel of communication,” for the release of Ukrainian children being held in Russian territory. She cleverly suggested to Putin that doing so “will do more than serve Russia alone … [it] will serve humanity itself.” [Brandon Drenon, CNN, October 10, 2025.]

She also appealed to his paternal instincts by reminding him that:

“Every child shares the same quiet dreams in their heart…. They dream of love, possibility, and safety from danger.” [Id.]

Atta girl! Strike directly at Putin’s well-known, ingrained humanitarian instincts. Maybe she should also have dangled next year’s Nobel Prize under his nose while she was at it.

But somehow, it worked. And today Melania herself took the podium in the White House to announce (no doubt modestly) the success of her mission:

“Eight children have been rejoined with their families during the past 24 hours. Each child has lived in turmoil because of the war in Ukraine.” [Id.]

That is truly phenomenal news for those children and their families — the sort of news we need to hear now and then in order to restore our faith in humanity. Whether Melania Trump undertook this effort on her own, or was nudged into it, is immaterial; the fact is, she did it. For that, she deserves kudos.

That said, however, let’s not forget that Russia has been charged with holding — they call it “rescuing” — some 19,500 Ukrainian children, or possibly more, since the start of their “special military operation” on February 24, 2022. The first eight to be reunited with their loved ones represent a definite step in the right direction.

But the road ahead is a long and bumpy one. And my hope — indeed, my plea to Melania Trump and to all who have worked with her on this vital issue — is that they keep going, and never let up until every last Ukrainian child is back where they belong: at home, in the sovereign nation of Ukraine.

Thanks for getting the ball rolling. Now let’s see how far it goes.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
10/10/25