April 28, 2025 (EIRNS)—The two upcoming Schiller Institute international conferences—one in Europe soon, and one set for May 24-25 in the New York Metropolitan area (online and in person), take on special responsibilities in light of the rapidly evolving strategic situation of both danger, and of opportunity for dramatic positive breakouts.
Schiller Institute founder Helga Zepp-LaRouche today stressed two tasks before all friends of humanity: First, to stop the escalation of warfare. Secondly, to enable recognition of the failure of the policies behind the warfare, and to put in place new, correct policies. The New York conference on May 24-25 is titled, “A Beautiful Vision for Humanity in Times of Great Turbulence!”
Focusing on these objectives, she said, amounts to a commitment to do whatever is in our power to prevent the various failed policies of the West, and to support the success of the Global South as the driver for all humanity.
On the front of conflicts, the tension between India and Pakistan remains fraught over the April 22 incident, in which 26 Indian tourists were murdered by terrorists in the Kashmir region in India under dispute with Pakistan for some time. Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar is staying back from the pre-scheduled BRICS meeting of foreign ministers today and tomorrow in Brazil of BRICS member nations and partner nations. Offers to mediate have come from Saudi Arabia and BRICS member Iran.
The BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs gathering in Rio de Janeiro is explicitly dedicated to mutually beneficial statesmanship among its topics of attention. One session is titled, “The Role of the Global South in Reinforcing Multilateralism.” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke about this in a substantial, written interview today in the Brazilian journal O Globo. He stated, “BRICS stands as a focal point with a mission to coordinate the interests of the Global Majority’s leading countries.”
On the sidelines of today’s BRICS session, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met. Lavrov remarked, at the opening of their talks, “There is an ongoing struggle between those trying to preserve a unipolar system, rooted in colonial and neo-colonial practices long used by the West to conduct world affairs, and those who are working to build a just multipolar world order.” The respective governments are actively preparing for next week’s visit of President Xi Jinping to Moscow for the celebrations marking the 80th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
Today Russia’s President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia will observe a three-day ceasefire in Ukraine over May 8-10 in respect of the 80th anniversary. Russian forces will respond only if attacked.
A remarkable briefing by Foreign Minister Lavrov was provided to the American public yesterday, addressing the terms to settle the Ukraine conflict, and how to build U.S.-Russian relations, in the Sunday CBS News broadcast of the lengthy interview he did April 24 with “Face the Nation” anchor Margaret Brennan. In answer to Brennan’s scattershot questions based on the whole range of NATO narratives—for example, she asserted that Russian forces target civilians, Russians snatched Ukrainian children, President Putin is untrustworthy, and such—Lavrov laid out reality and truth repeatedly. Lavrov said that U.S.-Russia negotiations are “moving in the right direction.”
Yesterday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Minister Lavrov spoke by phone on Ukraine talks and other matters. With the continuation of this diplomacy, the way is open for intervention to resolve the number of other conflicts, including those with the potential to escalate into nuclear war. The future depends on individuals everywhere taking responsibility for what they can do, and acting on it.
The situation in Gaza is desperate. Today the International Court of Justice began what is expected to be a week of proceedings against Israel’s 50-day blockade against allowing food, water and the means to life for all Palestinians in Gaza. This is genocide. It must stop. The 100th consecutive weekly meeting of the International Peace Coalition this Friday, May 2, will be a rallying point for action.
Finally, there is a dramatic expression of reality when it comes to the physical breakdown of the economy in the West, under the recent decades of casino economics and militarism. A sudden power blackout hit large parts of the entire Iberian Peninsula today, knocking out electricity for large parts of Spain and Portugal, and parts of southern France. The cause and chain of events remain to be identified. But as it happens, the incident contrasts with the new data out on patterns of installed nuclear power worldwide. China, with 102 nuclear power plants in operation, or near completion, ranks as number one in the world for production of nuclear power—safe, reliable and plentiful.
