Long before bombing Ukraine, Putin waged a trade war on it. He is still losing

Putin used tariffs, naval blockade and bombing of ports to eliminate Ukrainian agricultural competition. None of it worked

Grain being loaded at a Ukrainian port. Russia bombed port infrastructure to prevent Ukrainian exports. (Courtesy Ukraine Armed Forces)

Last summer, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced he was shutting down the Black Sea to Ukrainian agricultural exports.

The reason, ostensibly, was Ukraine’s second attempt to cripple the Kerch Bridge, Russia’s main…