Europe | Neither shock nor awe

Russia’s vaunted second offensive is a damp squib

Vladimir Putin is running out of ideas and ammunition

FILE - This image provided by the Ukrainian Armed Forces and taken in February 2023 shows damaged Russian tanks in a field after an attack on Vuhledar, Ukraine. The coal-mining town on Ukraine's eastern front has emerged as a critical hot spot in Donetsk province. Securing the town would give both Ukrainian forces and Russian troops a tactical upper hand in the greater battle for the Donbas region. (Ukrainian Armed Forces via AP, File)
Image: AP

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Neither shock nor awe”

The future of Ukraine

From the February 25th 2023 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

More from Europe

Participants of the II Black March of Wolyn 1943 are walking through the streets of the city on the 81st anniversary of the Wolyn massacre in Krakow, Poland, on July 11, 2024.

A dispute over old war crimes strains Polish-Ukrainian relations

The beneficiary is Russia

The leader of the far-right Freedom party (FPOe) Herbert Kickl leaves after talks with Austria's President on January 6, 2025 at the presidential Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria

Austria could soon have a first far-right leader since 1945

Herbert Kickl of the Freedom Party could be the next head of government



Europe has lots of lithium, but struggles to get it out of the ground

Its targets for strategic autonomy look hard to meet

Spain’s government marks 50 years since Franco died

Opponents say it is the birth of democracy that should be commemorated

How extremist politics became mainstream in France

Jean-Marie Le Pen paved the way for his daughter, Marine