The West should supply tanks to Ukraine

ALMOSTeleven months after Russia launched its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, the war has turned static. Since the liberation of the southern city of Kherson two months ago, the battle lines have . Fighting is largely restricted to bloody pounding along a short section of the front around Bakhmut, a city in the east of the country that the Russians have been trying to take since August at an . (On January 10th they claimed to have captured the nearby town of Soledar, but even this is disputed.) Unable to advance, Russia has resorted to blasting Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure. Ukraine, however, is getting better at intercepting missiles and drones, and mitigating the damage using speedy repairs and a swarm of back-up generators.But a frozen conflict suits the invader well enough, leaving Ukraine weak and vulnerable, its crippled economy dependent on foreign bail-outs while Russia malevolently squats along the vital coastline that provides sea access to the outside world. A frozen conflict allows Russia time to dig in, reinforce its lines and prepare for a fresh assault, or the permanent occupation of its new acquisitions. Ukraine therefore needs to keep pushing back, and to plan for the launch of its third big counter-offensive.