These chilling pictures show Russia putting a deadly new amphibious battle tank through its paces.
The Sprut-SDM1 can launch from warships in large number, firing a 125-mm gun and 7.62mm remote controlled machine gun as it approaches land.
It is also thought to carry missiles and to be equipped with night vision.
The tank is capable of almost totally submerging, making it difficult to target.
The highly agile Sprut, which can travel at seven knots in the water and 45mph on land, is thought to be aimed at projecting Russian power in the Middle East and North Africa.
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The new weapon has also heightened fears that the Kremlin has neighbouring Ukraine in its sights.
Any assault on Ukraine might require a coastal attack with armoured vehicles.
The tank would also be perfect for crossing Ukraine’s complex river systems.
Russia defence expert Bruce Jones said: “Moscow is filling up its inventory with the kind of modern, effective weapons that match the combat objectives that the Kremlin envisages it needing in the future.”
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And the amphibious tank trials, currently being held in the Black Sea, follow an international alert over Russia’s massing troops at Ukraine’s border recently.
As well as a main gun firing shells, the Sprut-SDM1 has a powerful 7.62mm remote controlled machine gun which can fire whilst the vehicle is afloat.
Sources say the tank also offers the crew high-tech night vision so they can launch attacks from ships at night or during the daytime.
Once it has landed on the coastline the tank, which travels through water at seven knots, can reach speeds of around 45mph as it approaches targets.
It is also believed to have been fitted with a guided weapons system, launching missiles then immediately moving on to fresh targets.
The relatively small and nippy battle tank holds a crew of three including a commander, driver and weapons controller.
Once it has stormed a beach or crossed a river the Sprut-SDM1 can then storm towards target areas up to 310 miles inland before needing to refuel.
A defence source said: “There is a growing feeling Russia is preparing an expansion of its projected power around the Mediterranean.
“Or they could be preparing a move on Ukraine which might require a large tank formation with an amphibious capability.
“But the ability to launch tanks from the sea clearly offers Moscow’s forces a great advantage in terms of transporting attack vehicles by sea and quickly deploying them ashore.”
