Moscow: The Vostok (East) 2022 military exercise is scheduled to be held in Russia at the end of August. In this exercise, several countries including India are going to participate. China will also take part.

The war games are taking place during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and China is trying to threaten Taiwan. In such a situation, all eyes will be on these two countries.

The tank brigade actively participates in these wargames. Russia and China have decided to send their best tanks. China’s Type 96B tank will take part in the biathlon, while Russia’s T-72B3 is joining it.

Backbone of Chinese PLA

China’s Type 96B tank is called the backbone of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). This tank is the main battle tank of the PLA and it has been upgraded.

China has more than 7,000 tanks and this version is being termed as the strongest. This is the third generation tank and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) wants to use this tank in place of the old tanks.

This tank has been made by China North Industries Corporation (Norinco). Presently, the PLA has more than 2500 such tanks. However, there is no information on how many tanks have been upgraded.

Range of only 400 km

The specialty of the 96B tank is its strike range. It also gets transmission gear and an advanced fire control system. This tank has been in service since 1996 and China claims that it has a powerful 730 horsepower engine. Apart from this, unlike other tanks, this tank has been given a coaxial mean gun of 7.62 mm and it has a heavy machine gun of 12.7 mm on top.

Its operational range is just 400 kms. This 40 ton tank can run only at a speed of 65 km in an hour. Although American military experts call this tank simply ‘paper lion’. In the year 2017, when wargames were held in Russia in a similar way, the Bhishma tank of the Indian Army had destroyed this tank.

Russia’s powerful tank

Russia’s T-72B3 tank is currently an important weapon of the Russian army. This tank is involved in the ongoing war with Ukraine. When this tank was inducted into the army in the year 2010, it was called Russia’s third-generation battle tank.

This tank has been upgraded and now it has improved weaponry, security management and command control. This tank is a new version of the Soviet-era T-72 tank, which was a powerful weapon of the army in 1970. This tank has been prepared by the Russian company Uralvagonzavod. In November 2018, 10 such upgraded tanks were handed over to the Belarusian forces.

The tank is fitted with a 125 mm gun and is also equipped with a 7.62 mm PKTM machine gun. The tank has a Guided Weapon System for the Gunner and Commander. The tank can fire laser guided missiles with a range of 5000 meters at a time. The T-72B3 tank is equipped with an automatic fire control system.

Also, this tank attacks the enemy with the help of digital ballistic computer system. Weather sensors have been provided in the tank, due to which it can work even in bad weather. The tank can attack the enemy even at night.

Rocket and grenade also failed

Unlike the Chinese tank, this tank can run at a speed of 70 kilometers per hour. The 46 ton tank has a range of 500 km. Rockets and grenades also do not affect this tank because an active protection system has been given in it. Along with this, an anti-tank missile with a longer range has also been fitted in it. Apart from land, this tank can also fight war in water. It takes only 20 minutes to get ready for a water battle and after coming out of the water, it is ready for the next action in just 2 minutes.