Summary and Key Points: Winston Churchill famously described Russia as "a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma," highlighting the West's difficulty in understanding its motivations. This sentiment is echoed in recent comments by Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov, who claimed Russia's T-90M tank surpasses Western tanks like the British Challenger and German Leopard 2.

-Despite the destruction of numerous T-90Ms in Ukraine, Chemezov's statements seem disconnected from battlefield realities, perhaps intended to boost morale and market Russian hardware.

-His remarks underline the Kremlin's questionable logic and attempt to justify its military setbacks by undermining the reputation of Western-made tanks.

Russia's T-90M vs. Western Tanks: A Case of Misguided Bravado?

The late great Sir Winston Churchill described Russia as " a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma." He suggested the West couldn't understand its motivations. 

Even more questionable today is the Kremlin's logic.

Moscow’s attempts to justify its "special military operation" as being necessary to "denazify and demilitarize" Ukraine are absurd, and the same could be said of how it justifies its setbacks on the battlefield.

Comments made by Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov to Tass on Thursday raise the question of whether Russia’s leadership lives in the same world as the rest of us.

The head of the Russian military-industrial conglomerate tried to spin a tale about how the reputations of Western-made main battle tanks such as the British Challenger and German Leopard 2 have been tarnished.

"For example, the British Challenger has discredited itself in the zone of the special military operation, like the German Leopard. Even Abrams tanks with all their objective faults will have an advantage over Challengers. Meanwhile, our Proryv tank is a head above both the British and American tanks, and foreign customers understand this well," Chemezov said.

Tass bought into his statements and added, " The T-90M Proryv is the most advanced armored vehicle in the family of T-90 main battle tanks and most of all fit for modern warfare thanks to its all-round armor protection, top-notch all-weather highly automated fire control and enhanced survivability… The T-90M tank considerably surpasses its T-90 predecessor by its combat efficiency while keeping its advantages of exceptional reliability and minimal maintenance in operation."

Western Tanks, Not Miracle Weapons

It is certainly true that the Western-made MBTs were overhyped when it was announced they would be supplied to Ukraine. Expectations for their performance were poorly managed – the vehicles were caricatured as miracle weapons that would be critical to a long-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive last year.

The counteroffensive never really materialized and certainly didn't give the results many expected. By this time last year, it was evident that Kyiv's forces weren't going to drive out the Russian invader – and several Leopard 2s had been destroyed.

The Challenger 2 saw its first combat loss in the fall of 2023, and multiple M1 Abrams have also been destroyed. That shouldn't have come as a surprise; tanks are no more miracle weapons now than they were when they rolled across the battlefields of the Somme in 1916. 

It should also be stressed that none of the MBTs were brand new vehicles with the latest in military hardware. Further, Ukrainian troops received a crash course in operating the tanks, after years of operating Soviet-designed vehicles. By contrast, NATO tank crews receive years of constant training on the platforms.

And About the T-90M…

Perhaps the most baffling of Chemezov's comments is his claim that the "Proryv tank is a head above both the British and American tanks.” Russia has lost at least 100 of these super tanks, according to open-source military analyst site Oryx, which tracks losses on the battlefield.

As Stavros Atlamazoglou wrote for The National Interest in July, "The Russian military's use of T-90M tanks in Ukraine has not met expectations, highlighting significant shortcomings in what was considered Russia's best armor."

The T-90M may represent the "best Russia has to offer," he added, but it is still plagued with flaws that have made it vulnerable to man-portable anti-tank weapons. Earlier this year a pair of U.S.-supplied M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles succeeded in destroying a Proryv MBT.

With so many destroyed, it is hard to understand whether Chemezov actually believes the T-90M is that good. As the company's CEO, it is his job to hype up the tanks and other hardware that Rostec produces. His words might also be directed at those young Russian men who have to climb into what might be a metal coffin.

Author Experience and Expertise: Peter Suciu 

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].

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