It is usually a grave mistake to project hopes and wishes onto real-world situations. Putin is extremely unlikely to be scared of Ukraine's counter-offensive because the only news he receives from his lackeys is that everything is going very well and that Ukrainian forces are nearly exhausted. We need to recall that Putin's analysis of the West is not favorable: he sees us as fatally crippled by weakness and fear, and for the most part he is 100% correct. Since Putin's forces invaded Ukraine on 24th February 2022, the West has vacillated and prevaricated and our "leaders" have made endless windy speeches but the reality of support has always been far too little, far too late. When Trump waddles back into the White House in early 2025, US aid to Ukraine will abruptly cease; European NATO members meanwhile have run down their wholly inadequate stockpiles so not much additional support will be possible from that direction either. And so all Putin needs to do - like his client Bashar al Assad - is simply to hang on, which he can easily do. This is why Putin is not in any way scared of Ukraine's present battlefield activities.