Ukrainian forces seize Russia's top tank in breakthrough move

Soldiers of the 225th Independent Assault Battalion have captured the most advanced Russian tank still in serial production. After several months of attempts, the T-90M Proryv has fallen into Ukrainian hands and has already been handed over to the Ukrainian intelligence research department. Let's recall this machine's capabilities.

In the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, both armies regularly lose vehicles. Some are destroyed and cannot be quickly replaced, while others are captured by enemy forces and serve as trophies. This was the case recently with the Russian T-72B3, one of the best Russian tanks, which was added to the list of Ukrainian trophies intact.

Previously, this list included many other vehicles, including BTR-82 transporters, several of which were captured during a single defense army action. Now, through a Telegram channel, Ukrainians are reporting the capture of another vehicle – and not just any car, but a tank that Putin called "the best in the world."

The T-90M captured by soldiers of the 225th Independent Assault Battalion had been stranded over the past four months, according to the Telegram report. The Russians abandoned this damaged weapon on the front (at an unspecified location in Ukraine), where it was difficult to transport the vehicle beyond the area exposed to shelling safely.

Finally, the Ukrainians managed to evacuate the trophy and – as reported on the Ukrainian portal Militarny – handed it over to the appropriate units. The vehicle has already reached experts in Ukrainian intelligence, where it will likely be dismantled to understand better the technologies used in it. This will allow Ukrainians to learn how to better defend against Russia's best tank and how to destroy such equipment on the front during further battles.

Although during last year's Ukrainian studies on the T-90M, the defense army concluded that "the Proryv is a failure instead of a breakthrough," the latest Russian construction still poses a threat to many Western tanks operating on the front. This is primarily due to the 125 mm 2A46M-5 cannon with the Kalina fire control system. Additionally, the defensive capabilities of this equipment include 7.62 mm and 12.7 mm machine guns.

The crew's safety inside the T-90M is ensured by the Relikt reactive armor, which the manufacturer applied to the most critical points on the hull and turret. Mobility is provided by the power unit, which generates a maximum power of around 1,000 hp and allows the tank to reach speeds of nearly 45 mph.