The horror of Putin's hunger plan is so great that we have hard time apprehending it

In a series of Twitter posts, Timothy Snyder says he believes Vladimir Putin is using the instability of the food supply chain to his advantage, calling such a strategy "the last chapter in hunger politics."
"Russia has a hunger plan. Vladimir Putin is preparing to starve much of the developing world as the next stage in his war in Europe", Snyder wrote.
According to Index.hr, the area around the Black Sea, which includes Russia and Ukraine, is often called the "granary of Europe" because of the fertile land and high rates of grain production. In total, as much as 30 percent of the world's grain exports come from those two countries. Ukraine alone produces about 12 percent.

Russia has a hunger plan. Vladimir Putin is preparing to starve much of the developing world as the next stage in his war in Europe. 1/16

— Timothy Snyder (@TimothyDSnyder) June 11, 2022

It is reminded that the situation regarding the blockade of the export of Ukrainian grain has been unresolved for months. Putin claims that Russia will enable that export by sea, which, apart from Ukraine, was requested by many world leaders, but the ports are still blocked and Ukrainian grain cannot leave them. Snyder refers to that fact and says that, if the blockade continues, "tens of millions of tons of food will rot in silos, and tens of millions of people in Africa and Asia will starve."
"The horror of Putin's hunger plan is so great that we have a hard time apprehending it. We also tend to forget how central food is to politics. Some historical examples can help," said Snyder, who also argues that "the idea that controlling Ukrainian grain can change the world is not new. Both Stalin and Hitler wished to do so".