Three new MBTs from the East

摘要

Main Battle Tanks, you said? They are dead, dinosaurs of a bygone era. Nobody needs them anymore on contemporary military operations, and thus there are no real reasons for armed forces and industry alike to waste funds and other resources in the development and procurement of new models.rnThis appears to be the more or less prevailing attitude in Western decision-making circles. While actual combat experience has led to a precipitous volte-face as regards the importance of heavy armour in general and MBTs in particular in modern asymmetric warfare, involving both operations in urban terrain as well as in rugged countryside, it remains that development activities are effectively stopped. The design of the latest Western MBT, i.e. the French LECLERC was finalised more than 20 years ago, and whatever limited development activities are underway are focused on improvements to already existing types.