I'm John Batch with my colleague and friend, Mary Kistle, executive vice president, Stevenson

Cooperated, former senior advisor to the Secretary of State.

Many years in Asia for the Wall Street Journal of Torell Board, headed to Asia is Moscow.

Tast is putting out the announcement within these hours.

Vladimir Putin set to visit China in October.

Well, the play becomes much easier when both villains are on the stage at the same time.

Puzzle here is, right now, Putin, the headlines around him are not promising.

And the puzzle has been to China when it associated itself with something that isn't winning.

China's troubles are profound and internal right now.

The economy is in free fall.

But Putin is also troubled to the point of not being able to overcome Ukraine's resistance.

Standing up and not doing very well when it comes to recruiting his own people to fight in the war,

and now the famine weapon.

There is a report, not yet confirmed by all the headlines, that Russia is now trying to impose a blockade

on all cargo ships, two in from Ukraine, two in from the region filled with grain.

That's the famine weapon.

Larry Vladimir Putin is moving in circles that include bails above.

What do you make of this famine weapon?

Is this something that Europe will listen to, will back down from?

Well, Vladimir Putin has shown that he will use any method to prevail in his war in Ukraine,

whether it's threatening Belarus or using, as you call it, the famine weapon,

or having his people casually mentioned, nuking the UK, he has no moral scruples,

...