Originally, these were western supporters of soviet/russian imperialism. Soviet imperialism was very much a seamless continuation of tsarist imperialism.
After WW2, Soviet Russia had military control of much of Europe. They installed authoritarian governments that were under their control, but of course there were occasional reform movements, notably in Hungary 1956 or Czechoslovakia 1968. Russia crushed these “revolts” with overwhelming military force. They sent in the tanks, and so those who favored military aggression were called “tankies”.
Note: These were regular wars between countries by any definition.
Originally, these were western supporters of soviet/russian imperialism. Soviet imperialism was very much a seamless continuation of tsarist imperialism.
After WW2, Soviet Russia had military control of much of Europe. They installed authoritarian governments that were under their control, but of course there were occasional reform movements, notably in Hungary 1956 or Czechoslovakia 1968. Russia crushed these “revolts” with overwhelming military force. They sent in the tanks, and so those who favored military aggression were called “tankies”.
Note: These were regular wars between countries by any definition.