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11:49 26.08.2024 •
Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov
Photo: TASS
Sergey Chemezov highlighted the Russian T-90M Proryv tank which "is a head above both the British and American tanks, and foreign customers understand this well". The British Challenger and German Leopard tanks have tarnished their reputation in the special military operation area in Ukraine and foreign customers see that the Russian T-90M Proryv tank is superior, Russia’s state tech corporation Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov told TASS.
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, TASS notes.
T-90M Proryv at the military parade on Red Square in Moscow.
Photo: RIA Novosti
"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," the Rostec head said.
Sergei Chemezov, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, says the United States and its Western allies risk triggering a global war if Washington continues to "provoke" the conflict in Ukraine and allow Kyiv to attack Russian territory. His remarks to Reuters offer a rare insight into thinking in Putin's inner circle following a surprise Ukrainian incursion into Russia's Kursk region, to which the president has promised a "worthy" response but has not yet said what that will entail.
Chemezov, CEO of the Rostec corporation which supplies many of Russia's arms for the war, said Russia felt confident and had enough weapons more than two years into what the Kremlin calls its special military operation (SVO) in Ukraine.
He reiterated the Kremlin's position that the conflict is a battle between the West and Russia.
"In a situation where the West, led by the United States, provokes war, we must be ready," Chemezov said in written responses to an interview request. "The third year of the special operation is under way – Russia feels confident."
He said no one would provide a time frame for when the war might end, and accused the U.S. of stoking the conflict by supplying weapons to Kyiv and allowing strikes deep into Russia.
"The further it goes, the greater the risk that the world will be drawn into a global conflict. It looks strange, but Western countries do not seem to understand just how fraught this is for them."
He said it was a "myth" that there were empty shelves in Russian shops because of sanctions and increased defence spending.
"Go to any Russian hypermarket and see for yourself – everything is fine with 'butter'," he said. "Russia has enough "canon'. We have increased the production of weapons many times over."
Rostec's headcount will rise by tens of thousands this year, he said, describing the departure from the Russian market of Western companies such as Boeing (BA.N), opens new tab and Airbus (AIR.PA), opens new tab as an "opportunity" for Rostec for which wanted to say "thank you".
"We have passed the main stress. We managed to extract advantages from the situation and draw the necessary conclusions. One of them is: no more joint business based on trust with Western countries," Chemezov said.
Chemezov said defence companies would continue to make a significant contribution to Russia's economy even after the conflict in Ukraine.
There are signs of significant delayed demand from abroad in the field of weapons exports, he said, partly due to the fact that Russian weapons had been proven on the battlefield in Ukraine.
"Our partners are sympathetic and ready to wait," Chemezov said, without naming them. "There is already a considerable queue on the 'waiting list'."
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