The T-72 is a Soviet-designed main battle tank that entered production in 1973. It replaced the T-54/55 series as the workhorse of Soviet tank forces (while the T-64 and T-80 served as the Soviet high-technology tanks with faster autoloaders, better mobility and armor). In front-line Russian service, T-72s are being upgraded or augmented by the T-90, itself a modernized version of the T-72B. The T-72 has been exported and produced in many countries.
Operators Current operators
– 325 T-72M1/M1M as of 2025. – 50 T-72M1 as of 2023. – 100 T-72A, T-72B, T-72B3M as of 2025. – ~405 T-72A, T-72AV, T-72B, and T-72SIM2 as of 2025. – 477 T-72B and 20 T-72B3 mod. 2016 as of 2025. Various T-72 modifications in reserve. – 90 T-72M1/M in service as of 2025.IISS 2025 – 45 M-84A4 Sniper, which is an improved variant of the T-72M, as of 2025 awaiting replacement with the Leopard 2A8. 30 M-84A4 were be donated to Ukraine in 2025.International Institute for Strategic Studies: The Military Balance 2025 – 100 T-72B/UA1 in service as of 2025. 50 bought from Yemen and 171 T-72UA1 vehicles reportedly ordered from Ukraine in 2011. –140 T-72B/B1/SIM1 in service as of 2025. Upgraded T-72 SIMs were upgraded in Georgia with assistance of Israel. – 44 T-72M1 in service as of 2025. – 2,418 T-72M1 in service as of 2025. – 480 T-72S in service as of 2025. - 178 T-72M/M1 in service as of 2009. Some T-72S MBTs in service with the PMF. Some T-72s have been upgraded and modernized by Iran with Rakhsh kits. − < 63. Entered service for the Peshmerga after 1991. – 350 T-72BA in service as of 2025. – 150 in service as of 2025. – 31 T-72B1MS in service as of 2025. – 48 PT-91M in service as of 2025. Delivered by Poland (which is an improved variant of the T-72M1). – 40 T-72B and 47 T-72EA in service as of 2025. –100 T-72A in service as of 2026.100 delivered. – T-72S in service as of 2025. 300 received from Ukraine between 2000 and 2008 – 20 T-72B1MS in service as of 2025. – 10 T-72AV and 31 T-72M1 in service as of 2025. – 201 PT-91 Twardy, which is an improved variant of the T-72M1, as of 2025. 382 T-72 and 232 PT-91 as of 2019. 2008 – 586 T-72M1 and T-72M1D, 135 T-72M1Z (T-72M1 upgraded to PT-91 standard), and 98 PT-91 in service 2006, 2007 – 597, 2005 – 644, 2004 – 649 – 700 T-72A/B/BA and 470 T-72B3 in active service. 488 T-72A and 99 T-72B/BA in store as of 2025. 1100 T-72B3, 550 T-72B3M, and more than 1000 T-72B in operation in 2022, 4800 variants of the T-72B in total. As of February 2023, the Russian Army operates 400 T-72B/BA, 500 T-72B3, and 250 T-72B3M tanks; the Russian Naval Infantry operates 170 T-72B/B3/B3Ms; the Russian Airborne Forces operates 50 T-72B3/B3M; while the 1st Army Corps and 2nd Army Corps operates some T-72A and T-72B tanks. 10,000 T-72 tanks of all variants in different conditions in storage. – 30 T-72B1MS and 195 M-84, which is an improved variant of the T-72M, as of 2025. – 30 T-72M1, still in service in 2025. – 80 T-72AV in service as of 2025. 96-101 units delivered in two shipments from Ukraine: first, 32 T-72 on the MV Faina in 2009, and second, 67 T-72 in 20XX. 2 T-72 tanks were destroyed during the Heglig Crisis. – 70 T-72AV as of 2023. – Reported Syrian Democratic Forces − Reported. – 28 T-72 Ural/A/AV/B and 3 T-72B1 in service as of 2025. – 650 T-72 and T-72UMG in service as of 2025. – 40 T-72A and 10 T-72B in service as of 2025. – 550 T-72 and 18 PT-91 Twardy in service as of 2025. In January 2014, Ukraine had 600 T-72 tanks all in storage. They were returned to active service since the War in Donbas, and several were captured and pressed into service during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, while others were donated by NATO members such as Poland and Czech Republic. Russian separatist forces in Donbas – 70 T-72 in service as of 2025. – 92 T-72B1 in service as of 2025. Delivered in 2009–2012 from Russia. In June 2012, Russia and Venezuela agreed on deal for 100 more T-72. – 39 in 2003.
Evaluation / aggressor training
– 1 donated by Germany to Australian Army for evaluation. – Former East German tanks received at the end of the Cold War for OPFOR training. Out of service by 2000. – 1 obtained from the exchange of industrial machinery in Romania for scientific research, which is called "Type 64". And as of 2023, a domestically modernized variant equipped with a new turret—reportedly intended for export to third countries—has also been spotted in China. – Used for aggressor training. Its presence was considered classified but released into public after army's invitation events. – 1 received from Iran in 1980s. – Acquired 8 former East German T-72s in 1991 primarily to evaluate Soviet armour. One has been preserved, while others are used as targets. – 90
Former operators − ~20 T-72AV/B and 1 T-72SIM2 as of February 2023, seized by Azerbaijan following the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh.
– 100 T-72AV delivered by Ukraine in 2010. – 30 T-72M4CZ in service as of 2025, but phased out in December that year as deep refurbishment was impracticable. 50 T-72M1s were donated to Ukraine between 2022 and 2023. Later all usable T-72M1 tanks were donated to Ukraine (last T-72M1s left Czechia in Spring 2025). – About 1,700 T-72/T-72M/T-72M1s were produced between 1981 and 1990. The Czechoslovak army had 815 T-72s in 1991. All were passed on to the successor states in 1993:
– 35 T-72s (from USSR), 219 T-72s (from Poland and Czechoslovakia), 31 T-72Ms (from USSR), 162 T-72Ms (from Poland and Czechoslovakia) and 136 T-72M1s. 135 T-72S were ordered but none delivered before reunification. 75 T-72s were fitted with additional hull armour. Passed on to the unified German state
– At least 1 captured in Eritrean-Ethiopian War. Current status unknown. – Some 160–170 T-72M1s. About 70 T-72M1s (one armoured brigade) were bought from the Soviet Union and were delivered in 1984, 1985–1988 and 1990. A further 97 T-72M1s (including a small number of command versions T-72M1K and T-72M1K1) were bought from German surplus stocks in 1992–1994. All withdrawn from service in 2006. Scrapped in Jyväskylä or sold as spares to the Czech Republic. At least two Finnish T-72s are still in working order and have been used in showcases.Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: – Several were captured from the Syrian army. – 33 T-72M1 possibly ordered by South Sudan from Ukraine, but seized by Kenya after being held ransom en route by Somali pirates in 2008. Returned later to South Sudan. – 150 in 2003. – 30 T-72A and 1 T-72AK delivered from Ukraine in 1999. All tanks were donated to Ukraine in June 2022. – 31 T-72Ms were bought from the USSR, and received between 1978 and 1979. Withdrawn from service (in long-term storage), 28 tanks are for sale (23 of them need repairs and five are operational).
– In 1994 Sierra Leone acquired two T-72s from Poland via Ukraine (the vehicles were previously in Polish service). Another unspecified number of ex-Polish tanks was delivered to Sierra Leone in 1997 also via Ukraine (these vehicles also previously served with Poland). – 1991 – 650 T-72A, T-72AV, T-72AVS, T-72S, T-72M, T-72M1, T-72M1M, T-72M1S, T-72B obr. 1989, T-72B3, T-72 Adra (a domestically improved version of the T-72M1 featuring slat and spaced armor, with later versions also including the "Sarab" active protection system.) and T-72 Shafrah – Passed on to successor states:
Tigray Defense Forces − Surrendered to the Ethiopian forces in the aftermath of the Tigray War. – Bought approximately 18 T-72Ms from the USSR and 72 from Czechoslovakia, later developed the improved M-84.
Failed bids – Interest was expressed in obtaining multiple T-72 units to serve as the army's main battle tank, but the Leopard 2 was ultimately chosen as the main battle tank of the Indonesian National Armed Forces; one Indian Army T-72 that had been prepared to be sold to Indonesia was instead purchased by Russia in 2024.
Variants
Soviet Union and Russia
The T-72 was designed and first built in the Soviet Union.
T-72 "Ural" (Ob'yekt 172M) (1973): Original version, armed with the 125 mm D-81TM smoothbore tank gun. Unlike the later versions it had the searchlight mounted on left. It also had flipper-type armour panels. It had the TPD-2-49 coincidence rangefinder optical sight protruding from its turret."Czołgi Świata" (World's Tanks or Tanks of the World) magazine issue 20 T-72K: Command version of the T-72 "Ural" with an additional R-130M radio. Company command versions were fitted with two additional R-123M/R-173 radios and also carried a 10 m telescopic mast. Battalion and regiment command versions were fitted with two additional R-123M/R-173 radios and the R-130M that used the 10 m mast when it was erected. In NATO code, the T-72K was represented by three different designations: T-72K1, T-72K2 and T-72K3 which represented the company command version, battalion command version and regiment command version. Robot-2: Remote controlled T-72 "Ural". Ob'yekt 172-2M "Buffalo": Modernization of the T-72 made in the early 1970s. The angle of the front armour slope was changed to 30 degrees. 100% metal side skirts protecting sides of the hull, added armour screens protecting the turret, ammunition storage increased to 45 rounds, modified suspension, added smoke grenade dischargers (SGDs), engine power boosted to . T-72 "Ural-1" (Ob'yekt 172M1) (1976): new 2A46 main gun, new armour on the turret. T-72A (Ob'yekt 172M-1) (1979): An improved version of the basic T-72 "Ural". Large numbers of early-production T-72 "Ural" models were modernized in the 1980s. Searchlight has been placed on the right-hand side of turret, blanking off the TPD-2-49 coincidence optical rangefinder and replaced by the TPD-K1 laser rangefinder, added plastic armour track skirts covering the upper part of the suspension with separate panels protecting the sides of the fuel and stowage panniers instead of the flipper-type armor panels used on the T-72 "Ural", the turret front and top being heavily reinforced with composite armour better known by its US codename – "Dolly Parton", an electronic fire control system, MB smoke grenade launchers, flipper armour mount on front mudguards, internal changes, and a slight weight increase.
T-72A obr.1982g: Additional glacis armour with thickness of 16 mm of high resistance steel. T-72A obr.1984g: Late production with new turret, new gunner night sight 1K13-49, new engine. Smoke launchers on the turret side. T-72AK (Ob'yekt 176K): Command version of the T-72A. In NATO code T-72AK was represented by three different designations: T-72AK1, T-72AK2 and T-72AK3, which represented the respective command versions for companies, battalions and regiments. T-72AV: ("V" for vzryvnoi – explosive) model with Kontakt-1 explosive reactive armour fitted to hull front and turret. T-72M (Ob'yekt 172M-E2, Ob'yekt 172M-E3, Ob'yekt 172M-E4): Soviet export version, similar to the T-72A but with thinner armour and 125 mm D-81T smoothbore tank gun with 44 rounds. It was sold to Iraq and to Syria and was also built in Poland by Bumar-Łabędy. and Czechoslovakia.
T-72MK (T-72M(K)): Export version of T-72AK. It is a command vehicle for battalion commanders and has additional radio equipment, including the R-130M radio, AB-1-P/30-M1-U generator and a TNA-3 navigation system. The main external difference is a 10 m telescopic antenna stowed under the rear of the stowage box during travel. An additional antenna base for this telescopic antenna is mounted on the left side of the turret. Because of the additional equipment, the number of rounds for the 125 mm tank gun had to be lowered from 44 to 38. In NATO code, the T-72MK was represented by three different designations: T-72MK1, T-72MK2 and T-72MK3, which represented the respective command versions for companies, battalions and regiments.