Agriculture in Ukraine and Russia 1986 Many Parallels to Today

In the mid-1980's the Soviet Union was softening its stance against foreign journalists in the Glasnost and Perestroika period under Mikhail Gorbachev..  But it was still the cold war and neither side trusted the other.  A group of twenty-five farm broadcasters and agricultural specialists headed for the agricultural lands of Ukraine and the big cities of Russia just months after the Chernobyl Nuclear Accident.  

We were the first western farm journalists who were able to see the people and farming operations in Ukraine.  The comparisons we made to U.S. farming were shocking.  We also were watched and controlled like spies as we toured the Soviet monuments and exhibitions in Moscow. 

Two weeks of having each other's backs and reporting on a country that was our competitor on many fronts, yet with people who just wanted to live their lives without conflict.

In a few weeks, I'll add to this story by talking with Jeffrey Hardeman, my videographer on this trip and recount our challenges to shoot video and get it home to the U.S.