When the world gets closer.

We help you see farther.

Sign up to our expressly international daily newsletter.

Already a subscriber? Log in .

You've reached your limit of one free article.

Get unlimited access to Worldcrunch

You can cancel anytime .

SUBSCRIBERS BENEFITS

Exclusive International news coverage

Ad-free experience NEW

Weekly digital Magazine NEW

9 daily & weekly Newsletters

Access to Worldcrunch archives

Free trial

30-days free access, then $2.90
per month.

Annual Access BEST VALUE

$19.90 per year, save $14.90 compared to monthly billing.save $14.90.

Subscribe to Worldcrunch
FOCUS: Russia-Ukraine War

Western Tanks To Ukraine Trigger Russian Threats — But Also Fears Of Major Counterattack

Germany and the U.S. overcame months of reluctance in the past 24 hours to commit to sending heavy combat tanks to Ukraine. Russia responded with official bluster, but others in Moscow fear that the tanks delivery could be a gamechanger on the battlefield.

Picture of recently mobilized Russian troops

Recently mobilized Russian troops getting ready to depart for service

Cameron Manley

A week of growing expectations of a coming Russian offensive was turned on its head Wednesday as Germany and the U.S. announced their intention to send heavy combat tanks to Ukraine.

The sudden show of resolve on supplying tanks — after months of reluctance, particularly from Germany — has prompted some Russians to fear that Ukraine will now be equipped for a major counterattack. That would be a significant reversal after speculation had been growing this month about a Russian spring offensive.

Stay up-to-date with the latest on the Russia-Ukraine war, with our exclusive international coverage.

Sign up to our free daily newsletter.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government confirmed Wednesday morning that Berlin plans to send at least 14 German-built Leopard 2 tanks to the frontline. U.S. media also reported that Joe Biden’s administration is expected to officially announce Washington's commitment, with at least 30 M1 Abrams tanks expected to be sent.

The timeline remains unclear as to when the vehicles would make it into combat. Still, both sides on the war acknowledged that it is a significant development with the potential to change the math on the battlefield.

Official Russian response was loaded with typical incendiary rhetoric. Dmitry Peskov, press secretary to Russian president Vladimir Putin, said the new tanks would "burn like all the rest, only these ones are expensive.”


Anatoly Antonov, Russian ambassador to the U.S., told state media company TASS that the news was “another blatant provocation” and that U.S. tanks would “be destroyed by our military “the same all other NATO equipment has and will be destroyed.”

Will French tanks be next?

One Russian political commentator Ivan Arkatov told media site Novorossiya that Germany’s announcement, which followed America’s, showed that the U.S. was the puppet-master of the West.

“This is an indicator of Germany's lack of sovereignty. It is not for nothing that a large number of U.S. military bases are located in Germany. If the Germans are already under the spell of the Americans, what can we say about other Western countries?”

Until now, the U.S. and Germany have resisted pressure to join the British military — which promised last week to send a dozen Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine — in sending heavy armor to Ukraine, fearing the move would escalate the conflict and make NATO a direct party to the war with Russia. Washington has also previously cited the extensive training and maintenance that the high-tech Abrams tanks demand.

While the reported number of tanks is likely to fall short of the 300 Ukraine says it needs to win the war, the move could spark a chain reaction of other Western nations sending similar aid — including France, where the government is also considering sending its own Leclerc tanks to the frontline.

Spring offensive

This would allow Ukraine to make substantial attacks on the ground and, combined with the Patriot air defense systems pledged by the U.S. at the end of last year, could help Ukraine to make serious progress on the battlefield.

I hope this time our intelligence will be able to figure out where this offensive will be.

Pro-Putin political scientist Sergei Markov wrote on his Telegram channel that he feared “All this was being done for the planned spring offensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine under the command of NATO generals.”

Russian political scientist Malek Dudakov shared Markov’s concerns, but suggested that a possible offensive may not come as early as spring. “Washington will have to make concessions. They will need to specifically purchase Abrams for Ukraine, since it was not part of their original plan to give away their tanks,” Dudakov suggested.

Commenters on a RIA Novosti article reporting the announcement were also fearful. “Now that Kyiv is being supplied directly with tanks, our men will become exhausted,” one person said. “They will pour a hundred tanks into the fire every three months. It will drag out the conflict. If we want to succeed we will need to use bombers from the air.”

Another commenter stressed the need for Russia to actively prepare for the coming offensive, if it hoped to interrupt the battlefield defeats that have become all too common for Russia: “(Ukraine) will prepare a major offensive with the participation of all Western Challenger tanks, Leopards and armored vehicles sent to Ukraine,” the commenter said. “I hope this time our intelligence will be able to figure out where this offensive will be and the army will be ready to avoid another Kharkiv repeat.”

You've reached your limit of free articles.

To read the full story, start your free trial today.

Get unlimited access. Cancel anytime.

Exclusive coverage from the world's top sources, in English for the first time.

Insights from the widest range of perspectives, languages and countries.

Society

Feminists Infiltrate The “Incelosphere” — Where Toxic Content Warps Modern Masculinity

An increasing number of male teens and young adults who've experienced feelings of rejection wind up in what's been dubbed the “incelosphere,” a place where they can find mutual understanding in a world they think is against them. Two women Polish journalists spent two years on the online servers these “beta males” are flocking to in ever greater numbers.

Illustration of a man wearing a hoodie looking at a laptop, with two women watching over his shoulder.

Watching over "beta males" and their online toxic masculinity

AI-generated illustration / Worldcrunch
Patrycja Wieczorkiewicz

In her book For The Love Of Men: From Toxic To A More Mindful Masculinity, Canadian feminist writer Liz Plank explained that the struggle of women can never be one without confronting the crisis of manhood.

Plank is part of the forward-thinking feminist researchers and authors who've dedicated a significant amount of their work to the problems of men and masculinity, always sure to arouse suspicion. In reality, from a young age, we are forced into one of two oppressive patterns – masculinity and femininity – which in turn shape our behavior and our choices.

Keep reading...Show less

The latest