Russia intends to repeat Holodomor famine in Ukraine, top Ukrainian official claims

The Russian Federation is trying to repeat the Holodomor in Ukraine, head of the country’s Presidential Office Andriy Yermak said as Russians continued their invasion of Ukraine with "outdated" weapons. In a statement shared on Telegram, Yermak asserted that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s troops were shelling agricultural lands in an attempt to annihilate the harvest. Notably, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has many times highlighted that invaders were deliberately destroying crops and agricultural equipment.

Yermak also wrote, "Our soldiers are putting out the fires, but "food terrorism" must be stopped. We are discussing ways to resolve the food crisis with our allies."

Between 1932 and 1933, Soviet Ukraine suffered from man-made famine called Holodomor (also called terror famine). The Holodomor famine was part of the wider Soviet famine of 1932–1933 which affected the major grain-producing areas of the country. The real cause of the famine remains debatable. Some historians conclude that the famine was planned and exacerbated by Soviet political leader Joseph Stalin to eliminate a Ukrainian independence movement. Meanwhile, others suggest that the famine arose because of rapid Soviet industrialisation and the collectivization of agriculture.   

German minister accuses Russians of using starvation to win war

Russians are deliberately using starvation as a tool to win the war, Germany’s Agriculture Minister said on Thursday as Putin’s troops continue to block Ukrainian ports. Speaking to N-TV on his visit to Kyiv, Cem Ozdemir reckoned that stonewalling Ukraine’s export of food grains was a “disgusting form of warfare” that the Kremlin was using to salvage its war of attrition. Notably, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly called for lifting the excruciating blockade on his country’s port stating that it was sabotaging global food security.

Since the start of the war, Russians have targeted the Ukrainian port cities of Mariupol and Odesa in an effort to cut off the country’s outlet to the Black Sea. On Thursday, Ozdemir stated that he had discussed alternative routes of export with his Ukrainian counterpart Mykola Solskyi. However, he pointed out that “alternative routes cost an insane amount of money.” Notably, the German lawmaker also revealed that his ministry was also working to devise alternative routes of trade for Ukraine. 

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