My fellow Americans … alright, maybe that’s a little overboard.

As a newfound opinions writer, I find myself looking to established columnists when I have concerns. Names like Joe Soucheray and Joel Stein come to mind most of the time, but recently I’ve been paying attention to some names that carry a little more weight.

Names like Vladimir Putin, John McCain and Hassan Rouhani have taken center stage in the past few weeks as international “letters to the editor” have appeared to become a trend.

I’ve seen American politicians write opinions pieces for newspapers before. In fact, it happens quite frequently. It makes sense: a free and direct platform where informed Americans can read their argument without being segmented by television. What I haven’t encountered before are leaders of foreign countries addressing me directly.

The first attention-grabbing piece came from the Russian President, Putin, in The New York Times. With the United States on the verge of an assault on Syria, Putin reached out directly to the American public with a letter asking for caution from the United States. In his argument, Putin both commended and criticized the Obama administration for its decisions, but more importantly spoke about the need for continuing dialogue between nations.

In the following week Sen. McCain (R-Ariz.) fired back at Putin with a letter in the Russian political newspaper Pravda, saying the Russian people deserve a better government. Though the vast majority of the letter slams Putin, McCain goes on to say to the Russian people, “I believe in you. I believe in your capacity for self-governance and your desire for justice and opportunity.”

Each of the articles seemed all too politically familiar. Both politicians made obvious jabs at the other’s national leadership, but then came back with positive words asking to continue dialogue. Politics as usual from my perspective.

Then, a very unexpected letter came to the Washington Post.

New Iranian President Rouhani wrote another letter addressed to the American people. I was expecting a very cold letter meant to stir up some attention, but I was pleasantly surprised by the Iranian.

Rouhani’s letter, titled, “Why Iran seeks constructive engagement,” extended an olive branch that nobody saw coming. Rouhani talked about core values and diplomacy among nations, saying that global politics is “no longer a zero-sum game.” Stating that his goal for foreign policy is to get to the root of problems, Rouhani’s letter comes as a breath of fresh air after a summer of high tension in the Middle East.

Reflecting on these letters, maybe they’re not just politics as usual. They seem to be actually contributing to important dialogue. After Putin’s letter, the United States agreed on a non-violent solution with Syria and Russia to confiscate all chemical weapons. After Rouhani’s letter, the Iranians attended the United Nations, and just before returning to Tehran, Rouhani spoke on the phone with President Obama ending a 34-year silence in diplomacy between the two nations.

This is obvious evidence of the progress coming from these letters. Lack of communication destroys international relationships, and the free-flowing ideas from leaders to all global citizens build community and understanding. I’m not suggesting that all of our world leaders become pen pals, but the more we hear from other world leaders, the more we understand their nations and cultures. Global diplomacy is incredibly messy, but this old-school approach can give us a fresh start with people all across the world.

Alex Goering can be reached at goer8777@stthomas.edu.