How many times does it have to happen?

Between 1932 and 1933, millions of Ukrainians died of starvation in what was known as the Holodomor, or the Ukrainian famine. It was not caused by drought, floods, or crop infestation. It was manmade, most likely resulting from the disastrous effects of forced collectivization by the Soviet government.

It is still being debated whether that famine — which affected other parts of the Soviet Union as well — was intentionally created by Josef Stalin as a means of controlling the peasantry. But it quickly became obvious that, at the very least, its advent was used by him to press the people of Ukraine into submission, and to quash their nationalist sentiments and resistance to Soviet policies.

Yes, even then — nearly a century ago — Ukraine was fighting for its historic sovereignty. And the Soviet government was using the most lethal weapons at its disposal to prevent their success.

Fast forward to 2026. Josef Stalin is long dead . . . as is the political entity formerly known as the USSR, now broken apart into 15 independent nations, the largest and most powerful of which is the Russian Federation. But Russia, under Vladimir Putin, has not given up its lust for control of the country known as the “breadbasket of Europe.”

Now four and a half years into its war of attrition against the sovereign nation of Ukraine, Russia is growing desperate. The “special military operation” that was to have lasted no more than a few weeks has dragged on. Rather than frightening the Ukrainian people into submission, the invasion of 2022 only strengthened their resolve, and brought the allied nations of Europe, the United States, Canada and others to their defense.

Even 21st-century technology hasn’t won the day for Putin’s armies; on the contrary, Ukraine has become the world’s leader in the newest military innovation: drone warfare. And in his desperation, Putin — who has been viciously and illegally targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure throughout the war — has now resorted to the cruelest, most inhumane tactic in his arsenal: starvation of the civilian population. But not by the slow method of poor crop management employed by Stalin.

In the face of Ukraine’s unexpected push-back, Russia is once again — using modern methods of attaining maximum kill in minimum time — attacking agricultural lands with incendiary bombs, burning thousands of hectares of wheat and other crops in a matter of mere hours.

Viktor Hordiyenko,, a farmer in Ukraine’s Kherson region whose father was killed last year in a Russian drone strike, this year has lost his crops to Russian attacks:

“A hundred a day. This is not an exaggeration. A hundred drones a day. Shelling every day. They’re hunting us. They burnt 2,000 hectares of my wheat in a single night. Winter wheat, all the crops you see, have been scorched.” [Yevhenia Nazarova, RFE/RL, July 11, 2026.]

He added that the number of attacks has tripled recently — at harvest time — since just a few months ago.

Oleksandr Tolonnikov, deputy head of Kherson’s regional military administration, told RFE/RL that:

“The security situation in the Kherson region continues to deteriorate. Russia is not reducing the intensity of strikes, but, on the contrary, is systematically increasing terror against civilian residents.” [Id.]

The obvious goal: Starvation, leading to submission.

And the human and economic toll will likely stretch beyond Ukraine’s borders. It is one of Europe’s largest suppliers of wheat; a reduction in exports would affect, not only Ukraine’s economy, but those of other countries as well. The tentacles of Vladimir Putin’s immoral and blatantly illegal actions will reach far and wide.

But has he considered the possibility that his recent escalations might turn around and bite him in the ass? His war has already cost him dearly, both economically and in terms of his popularity . . . possibly even threatening his hold on power. Will this latest obscene cruelty be the final straw?

His ingrained autocratic nature will never allow him to concede. But autocrats have historically become the instruments of their own downfalls by reaching too far. They don’t have to call it quits; the people eventually do it for them.

And history does seem to keep repeating itself.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
7/15/26