>You have to wonder what the executives thought of this!
Based on the time period, in the words of Rick James, "cocaine is a helluva drug." If that was the actual reason, it makes total sense. If that's not the reason, then what the actual f were they doing?
There weren't many products in the Soviet Union that could be sold in the west. They needed a commodity that was to western standards. Soviet steel had full scrap value in the west and the ships were mobile. Pepsi also traded for tomato paste.