https://earthzine.org/the-great-grain-robbery-of-1972/

Quote:

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In 1972, the U.S. and the U.S.S.R were deep in the middle of the Cold War, but that did not stop the daily business of trade among nations. In fact, given the dicey agricultural policies and poor weather of the Soviet breadbasket, crop failure was not unusual. Soviet agricultural trade representatives often turned to the foreign commodity markets to make up the difference.

In July of 1972, the Russians began buying up foreign wheat, purchasing 10 million tons from U.S. brokers by August. Richard E. Mooney's economic analysis in a 1975 issue of The New York Times states that despite receiving reports of crop failures in the Soviet Union and elsewhere, the U.S. government failed to appreciate the significance of the global grain shortage and the effect it might have on the U.S. economy. As federal grain subsidies continued to favor bargains for the Soviets buying American wheat, the price of domestic grain rose sharply, causing a food price crisis back home. According to John A. Schnittker in a 1973 paper for the Brookings Institution, the U.S. government wasted $300 million in public funds and lost the same amount in potential revenue by unwittingly subsidizing the Russian wheat purchases.

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Can anyone recommend a book on the Cold War? Specifically the war between the KGB and the U.S.?

I don't have any book suggestions, yet, but I was on active duty during the "Cold War" and can say that during that time the KGB owned the CIA. Later, under Carter's failed administration it got much worse. As an example, during the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Carter decided to withhold any wheat shipments to Russia. Brazil and Argentina, et.al., stepped into that breach and the only entity that was hurt were American wheat farmers.

That's why Joe knew sanctions didn't work but his minions didn't get the lesson.

Anyway, history repeats itself, it really does.