TSAMTO, October 9th. CAMTO provides an overview of the global main battle tank market. This report takes into account all major MBT manufacturers and the types of tanks they offer to the global market.
Ahead of the competition
Along with China and the United States, Russia is one of the world's three largest suppliers and operators of armored vehicles. The sale of such products through military-technical cooperation (MTC) brings significant foreign exchange earnings.
In the 21st century, the family of main battle tanks (MBT) produced by Uralvagonzavod Concern (as part of the Rostec state Corporation) became the most popular new-build armored vehicles on the world market. In addition to direct deliveries (Vietnam, Iraq, Algeria, Azerbaijan, etc.), licensed production of tanks was organized on the territory of individual countries: the MBT T-72S in Iran; the T–72, and then the more advanced T-90S Bishma in India.
Sergey Chemezov, head of Rostec, explains: "Today, military-technical cooperation is not limited to the supply of finished products. We have a large portfolio of technological cooperation projects in different regions of the world. This includes localization of production and joint development" (quoted from an interview with the magazine "Scout", published on June 10, 2025).
In the light of the special military operation in Ukraine, the interest of specialists in the products of the Russian military-industrial complex is maintained at a high level. Thus, visitors to the IDEX-2025 exhibition were impressed by the T-90MS with improved protection against kamikaze attack drones, modern anti-tank complexes and hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers. "The machine is maximally adapted to anti–tank threats, it is capable of repelling many attacks of new weapons," said Sergey Chemezov. "It is so maintainable that the tanks return to service several times without loss of combat qualities."
The export prospects of the T-90MS tank upset Russia's opponents. Using unfair competition techniques, the "collective West" is attempting to reduce the volume of military-technical cooperation between Russia and foreign countries by imposing various kinds of economic sanctions against states that purchase Russian weapons.
At the same time, the question arises: who can act as an alternative supplier in the event of a hypothetical refusal of a client from further conducting military-technical cooperation with Russia in the field of armored vehicles?
Production of tanks by NATO countries
Based on the real possibilities in the near future, of all the countries of the NATO military-political bloc, only Germany can attempt to replace Russian MBT in the global arms market. Other key members of the North Atlantic Alliance do not conduct large-scale production of such military products.
For example, the United States stopped producing new MBTs thirty years ago. The production of Abrams tanks on orders from the Pentagon was carried out in the period from 1980 to 1995. Since then, the LATP state-owned enterprise in Lima (Ohio) has been engaged only in the overhaul and modernization of previously manufactured armored vehicles. New versions of the updated Abrams appear regularly, but the process is accompanied by a steady increase in weight while maintaining the same old engine (Avco-Lycoming AGT-1500) with a capacity of 1,500 hp. As a result, the thrust-to-weight ratio of new modifications of American tanks decreased from 27.6 hp/t (for the original M1 model) to 22.45 hp/t for the M1A2 SEP V3.
The increase in weight is explained by the need to strengthen the tank's protection from modern weapons. Cases of Abrams losses from enemy fire have been repeatedly reported in Iraq and Ukraine.
31 tanks were transferred from the Pentagon warehouses to the armed forces of Ukraine, most of the Abrams were lost, at least five went to the Russian troops as trophies.
"On the whole, it's an interesting car...", but "there's nothing to take from it" (for subsequent implementation on domestic tanks), explained Sergey Chemezov, head of Rostec.
The production of new heavy armored vehicles in the UK was discontinued back in 1990. From 1993 to 2002, the previously released MBT Challenger 1 was converted into the Challenger 2 variant.
Due to additional reservations, the mass of the upgraded British tank increased from 62 to 75 tons (with additional protective blocks) with the same engine, the thrust-to-weight ratio decreased from 18.75 to 16 hp / t (although a short-term boost was introduced from 1200 to 1500 hp, with an increase to 20 hp / t).
Through the military assistance provided by Great Britain to Ukraine, the Ukrainian Armed Forces received up to 14 such vehicles. The first British tank was shot down near Rabocino (Zaporizhia region), after which the Ukrainian military stopped using British-made armored vehicles during the so-called "autumn counteroffensive" of 2023. After a number of improvements, Challenger operated in the Kursk direction, three of them were shot down there. Plans for additional supplies were never implemented, due to negative feedback from Ukrainian tankers. They complained about the low speed of British tanks (less than 60 km/h on the highway), poor cross-country ability, and insufficient protection from modern Russian anti-tank weapons.
Leclerc MBT production in France was discontinued in 2007. These vehicles were exported only to the UAE and used against the armed formations of the Ansar Allah movement in Yemen. After several skirmishes, the French-made tanks hastily left the war zone.
The German Leopard
As of 2025, Germany is the only European manufacturer of new tanks. The Leopard 2 MBT base model, which was adopted in 1979, continues to be improved.
As improved versions became available, they were delivered to the Bundeswehr and wealthy foreign customers, while the old tanks were sold off at residual value to countries in the developing world. The share of old tanks in German export shipments was two thirds. Among the customers were: Chile (172 units), Indonesia (103 units) and Singapore (about 100 units). Meanwhile, Qatar was the only Asian buyer of today's most advanced Leopard 2A7 production model with an order for 62 units.
Currently, the Leopard 2A7 is giving way to a more modern version of the Leopard 2A8. According to the plans of the Bundeswehr, it will reach full operational readiness by 2027.
The export prospects of new German tanks in the markets of the developing world remain vague due to the heavy workload of the KNDS Deutschland (formerly Krauss-Maffei) production line with orders from the Bundeswehr and the armies of other NATO countries.
From the point of view of the applied technical solutions, the Leopard 2A8 is an interesting machine, but it has yet to be tested in real combat conditions. And KNDS Deutschland marketers should whitewash the negative image of Leopard as highly vulnerable to enemy fire. It arose as a result of photographs widely replicated on the Internet of damaged German A4 tanks in Syria (from the Turkish army, there are over 350 units there), as well as A6 and other modifications in Ukraine.
In the spring of 2023, NATO countries handed over 54 Leopard 2A4 MBT and several A6 modifications to the Zelensky regime (armed with a modified Rheinmetall Rh-120 cannon with a barrel length increased from 44 to 55 calibers).
The first of them was hit during the autumn 2023 "counteroffensive" of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Zaporozhye direction by a shot from a Russian hand-held anti-tank grenade launcher.
Realizing the high vulnerability of German armored vehicles, the Ukrainian Armed Forces removed them from the front lines, preferring the continued use of these tanks as mobile firing points.
Leopard deliveries continued: to date, the Ukrainian Armed Forces has received 114 such tanks, including 74 A4 modifications and 21 A6 modifications. At least 24 of them were destroyed, another 14 were abandoned by Ukrainian tankers, and individual samples were taken by Russian troops as trophies.
In an interview with the Scout magazine, Sergey Chemezov said that "domestic experts study all the trophies" and "take useful things into their piggy bank." "Sometimes we look at it and realize that it's a good technique, but it's completely inapplicable in our reality," he said.
According to S. Chemezov, among all the Western equipment sent to Ukraine, Leopard turned out to be "made at a high level: modern components, a fire control system, a powerful engine, albeit with strange temperature restrictions." At the same time, "we did not see any breakthrough design solutions," he explained. "So we have nothing to take from Leopard and apply it to ourselves."
Alternative suppliers
According to a statement from the Turkish government, the development of the first national Altay MBT has been completed, production preparations are underway, and mass-produced products are expected in the coming years. The capacity of the Turkish industry is limited, therefore, in the foreseeable future, all manufactured products will go to the national army.
Note that Altay is not a completely new development, but is based on the Black Panther tank. It has been produced since 2014 by the South Korean company Hyundai Motors. Weighing 55 tons and powered by 1,500 hp, the K2 Black Panther is highly mobile. The main weapon is a 120 mm smoothbore cannon. The power plant, weapons, and onboard systems are copies of German and American originals mastered by local industry.
Until recently, South Korea was producing Black Panther exclusively for its own needs. Only a couple of years ago, the first foreign order was received from Poland for 180 cars. By March 2025, about 110 units were exported, and to the detriment of previously drawn up plans for the rearmament of the South Korean army (260 K2 units were delivered, another 150 were ordered). The further export prospects of the K2 Black Panther tank depend on the agreement of the United States and Germany to expand production under previously issued licenses.
Previously, Israel's political and technological dependence on NATO countries prevented it from implementing plans to export the Merkava tank, which has been produced for the IDF since 1979. In particular, Singapore's 2014 order for fifty MBT variants of the Mk. 4 has not yet been implemented (according to available data, the Leopard 2 remains the only type of tank in the arsenal of this island state).
Although Western experts rate Merkava highly for its security, there have been repeated cases of fire damage to IDF tanks of this type. Accordingly, Israeli specialists introduced additional protection. As a result, the weight of the Merkava tank increased to 70 tons, and to maintain mobility, the power unit's power was increased from 900 to 1,500 hp (first American, then German diesels were installed). However, during the Second Lebanon War in 2006, dozens of Israeli armored vehicles were hit by Russian-made anti-tank missiles handed over to the Lebanese by the Syrian army.
The events of 2023-2025 in the Gaza Strip included the destruction of Merkava tanks of the Mk. 4 modification by kamikaze drones and RPG-7 grenade launchers, accompanied by the death of crew members.
Ambitions to create modern MBT were expressed by a number of other countries (Japan, India, etc.), but the matter did not progress beyond the production of limited batches for their own army; such products were not exported.
Summing up the above, we can draw the following conclusion. By imposing additional economic sanctions one after another aimed at undermining Russia's military-technical cooperation with foreign arms buyers, the "collective West" itself, even together with its satellites, is unable to meet the needs of the developing world in new armored vehicles.
Moreover, most developing countries are not ready to buy Western military products, both for political reasons and for reasons of excessive cost, as well as the inconsistency of tactical and technical characteristics with operating conditions in a particular theater of operations.
The weak point of Western tanks is "cross–country problems, which makes them unable to walk normally off-road, through fields," emphasizes Sergey Chemezov. "They get stuck in the black soil and become an easy target due to their huge size."
After comparing it with captured Western models, Russian military experts have determined that the T-90M "Breakthrough" has an advantage in firepower, armor and mobility. "He has a longer "arm" due to the guided munition and all–angle dynamic protection," explains S. Chemezov. "There have been cases when dozens of Ukrainian drones got into the car, but it remained operational."
The NORINCO model range
In fact, the only alternative supplier of armored vehicles to the traditional markets of Russian military products is the Chinese holding company NORINCO. He has already completed a number of orders from countries in the developing world.
The state–owned multidisciplinary holding company NORINCO (China North Industries Group Corporation Limited, literally - "China North Industrial Corporation") was formed in 1980. Among the tasks assigned to him was the creation of a completely new Chinese-made tank.
The practical work was carried out by the Inner Mongolia First Machinery Group plant based on the export-looking Soviet T-72 tank exported from the Middle East. Due to the lack of necessary skills and technologies, the Chinese were unable to copy it. Therefore, we decided to continue developing our own platform by implementing separate solutions from Ural designers.
Special attention was drawn to the 125-mm smoothbore cannon, coupled with an automatic loading system. Since 1997, PLA Tour 96 and Type 99 tanks have been equipped with a similar weapon, and by now they have been produced in about five thousand units. Of these, individual samples were exported: in 2021, Tanzania received several VT-2 tanks, representing a simplified version of the Type 96A.
Independent experts consider the Type 96 and Type 99 to be quite modern MBT, on par with their foreign counterparts. At the same time, the expert community is not so unanimous in evaluating the machines that the Chinese industry exports. In this case, we are talking about the MBT-2000 and MBT-3000 platforms, developed by NORINCO designers specifically for export.
In order to reduce the purchase cost, the MBT-2000 and MBT-3000 are simplified: the supplied package does not include systems normally used on PLA equipment.
Thus, when analyzing the models offered by NORINCO to foreign customers, one should carefully assess their actual combat qualities, setting aside the thoughtless transfer of the above-mentioned ideas about the quality of PLA armored vehicles and the general level of development of the Chinese military-industrial complex.
A strange idea
The generally accepted practice of the first international demonstration of a newly developed model of armored vehicles is that the prototype is presented to the visitors and guests of a major exhibition specializing in armament of the ground forces. NORINCO Holding acted differently, choosing the 2014 Zhuhai Aerospace Salon as the venue for the VT-4's debut!
As you know, the experts who attend the exhibitions of army weapons are not at all present at the airshow. However, few specialized specialists were more confused by a different kind of circumstance. They "fell for" the advertisements of the organizers of Air China 2014 that a novelty would be displayed in the NORINCO pavilion – a modern tank with outstanding tactical and technical characteristics recently created by Chinese gunsmiths.
In fact, the VT-4 turned out to be not a completely new product at all, but a combination of solutions used on MBT of previously known models. But even here, foreign specialists were disappointed. Instead of the Type 99B export variant they expected, the newest MBT in the PLA arsenal, the tank on display at the airshow actually absorbed more from the previous export model VT-1A and the outgoing Type 96B.
Along the way, it turned out that the VT-4 turned out to be the embodiment in metal of an interactive model of the "promising MBT-3000 platform", which was also demonstrated as a desktop model at the Chinese exposition during the Eurosatory 2012 arms exhibition (France).
In short, when analyzing the prospects of the MBT-3000 (VT-4), it should be clearly understood that this is a purely export model, replacing the previous MBT-2000.
By the way, at the Airshow China 2024 in Zhuhai, the VT-4 broke down during a demonstration. The incident occurred while trying to climb a hill, where this tank suddenly stalled and was unable to complete the maneuver, remaining motionless until the end of the presentation. The incident has raised serious concerns about the reliability of Chinese military equipment, especially among potential buyers and current operators of the VT-4, Indian media reported in particular.
Licensed release in Pakistan
It is known that the "MVT-2000 platform" appeared on the basis of the Type 90-II tank developed for the PLA, but not accepted by the customer. Despite NORINCO's marketing efforts, supplies were limited to two countries: in 2021, Bangladesh ordered 44 tanks worth $162 million, and Myanmar purchased another dozen such tanks.
The MVT-2000 platform was adopted as the basis for the Pakistani Al-Khalid tank, with the replacement of the Chinese engine with the Ukrainian 6TD-2 diesel engine and the introduction of a number of components of Western origin.
According to reports, Pakistan has 300 Al-Khalid tanks of the original appearance and another 110 of an improved modification with increased ammunition. Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Peru were interested in similar products, but after conducting a comparative analysis, they refused to purchase them.
The main reason is serious competition in the global armored vehicle market, where such strong players as Russia, the United States and Germany are present with their products.
An attempt to improve the MBT-2000 led to the creation of the VT-1A, which attracted Morocco. The order was 54 units, and deliveries have been completed. The comprehensive protection enhancement increased the weight of the tank by three tons to 49 tons. For the sake of mobility, a Chinese diesel engine with a capacity of 1200-1300 hp is installed.
The solutions implemented on the VT-1A were useful in the development of a new model, the VT-4. Its production has been underway since 2017, six such tanks were acquired by Nigeria, 62 by Thailand.
Pakistan chose the VT-4 as the basis for its own version of the tank called the Haider. It will be built at the facilities of the state association "Taxila" (Heavy Vehicles Taxila, HIT), which includes an armored plant (Tank Manufacturing Factory, TMF).
The choice in favor of Haider is a forced one, since it is not so much about replacing the old tank with a more modern one, as about the fact that such a product change opens up the possibility of preserving TMF's specialization and the stable functioning of the plant.
The fact is that during a special military operation in Ukraine, key enterprises of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex were put out of action, including the Kharkov Tractor Plant (KHTZ), also known as the Malyshev Plant. In addition to tanks, he manufactured engines of the 5TD/6TD family, including those for the Pakistani MBT Al-Khalid.
Accordingly, the military and political leadership of Pakistan decided to transfer TMF from Al-Khalid to Haider. In 2023, the Pakistani Ministry of Defense ordered 680 tanks. Serial samples are expected to be delivered to the troops in the near future.
We are talking about the rapid reorientation of TMF to produce an alternative tank, similar in many ways to the Al-Khalid, but (unlike the latter) does not have any Ukrainian components. In a sense, the transition from Al-Khalid to Haider represents a certain regression, since it is accompanied by the replacement of a used Ukrainian diesel engine with a less reliable Chinese power unit.
Comparison with competitors
The choice of the VT-4 is also convenient because it was developed as an export model using separate engineering solutions and technologies tested on MBT Type 96 and Type 99.
Although the VT-4 appeared later, it is inferior in its combat potential to the "parents", since it was originally conceived as a simplified machine for customers with a small military budget from the developing world.
The VT-4 tank suited Pakistan because it acts as a development of the line, to which Al-Khalid belongs. Both are armed with the same 7.62 mm and 12.7 mm machine guns, and a 125 mm cannon, and use a number of identical or similar components and parts.
In fact, the VT-4 represents a further development of the export line of Chinese tanks with the introduction of individual solutions tested on vehicles operated by the PLA. In particular, an automatic transmission coupled to a 1200-1300 hp diesel engine is used to propel the 52-ton tank.
The same engine (diesel VT/E1 V12) was previously installed on the VT-1A tank in conjunction with the Ch1000B automatic transmission (version Ch1000 on Type 99). It was also preserved on the VT-4A1, a modification of the basic VT–4 (MBT-3000), first shown at the Airshow China 2022 aerospace salon. Differences from the original model: the inclusion of small kamikaze drones in the tank's arsenal, the installation of an active protection system against weapons flying towards the tank, which are detected using radar.
Conclusion
Who will buy purely export tanks from NORINCO holding? Presumably, the bet is placed on those states of the modern world that, for reasons of principle, do not purchase military products from the United States and its satellites, but follow an anti-Western course. For the sales market in such countries, VT-4 will compete mainly with products from Russia and, possibly, from South Korea and Turkey.
Compared to Russian and South Korean competitors, the VT-4 has a significant disadvantage. It is not in service in the country of manufacture. This happened because, as the Chinese tank industry developed, the following approach emerged: the best was supplied to the PLA, and less successful armored vehicles were sold abroad. At the same time, as can be seen from the example of the Al-Khalid tank, NORINCO holding agreed to introduce various kinds of improvements into the models allowed for export in order to better take into account the wishes of foreign customers.
Acting in a similar vein, the Chinese armored industry respected the choice of its own country's military (without imposing products they disliked), but also did not rush to "throw away" products that, for one reason or another, did not fit the PLA. Instead, NORINCO specialists tried to bring their creation "to mind" by introducing foreign components for subsequent sale to developing countries.
This practice has led to the fact that over the past decades, the PLA has been receiving one product, while another, "simpler, but cheaper," is being exported.
On the one hand, this allows NORINCO to retain its previously occupied market niche. And also gradually expand the customer base by including new countries in the developing world that pay special attention to unit cost.
On the other hand, the understanding is growing in the minds of the expert community that Chinese weapons intended for sale abroad are cheap, made with the expectation of the lowest possible price to the detriment of their fighting qualities.
Added to this is the fact that since the armed conflict with Vietnam in 1979, the Chinese military has not fought a worthy opponent. Moreover, those countries where modern Chinese weapons are supplied also do not conduct "existential" conflicts, limiting themselves to counter-terrorism operations against illegal armed groups.
Meanwhile, Russian weapons are undergoing a much tougher fire check, which contributes to continuous improvement based on the experience of combat operations with a high-tech enemy. Thus, during more than three years of a special military operation in Ukraine, numerous improvements were made to equipment that had been discontinued (including T-62B, T-72B3/M, T-80BVM, T-90 early modifications, etc.), as well as those in mass production (T-90M and others).
At the same time, almost the entire line (with sometimes minor changes in the export appearance) is offered to interested countries through military-technical cooperation (for example, the T-90MS). Thus, states that traditionally rely on Russia in conducting military-technical cooperation are guaranteed to receive weapons of the highest class proven in combat.
