MOSCOW, July 22. /TASS/. Sneers at cope cages mounted on Russian tanks to protect them from drone strikes have now given way to the adoption of the technology by producers around the world, including the US company that makes the Abrams, said Oleg Yevtushenko, executive director of the Russian defense conglomerate Rostec.

"I would like to note that some people abroad initially ridiculed our certain innovations, in particular the so-called cope cages. However, some countries are now starting to adopt this practice. It has been reported recently that the US plans to reinforce the protection of its Abrams tanks, which, according to data at hand, have performed poorly on the battlefield. The Pentagon plans to outfit them with a special coating that reduces their thermal signature, and with passive protection elements against FPV drone attacks. In effect, the special coating is the answer to our Cloak, and the additional protection is the answer to our set of screens, meshes, lattices and other outside-mounted structures," he said at a State Duma meeting.

According to the executive, Russian armored vehicles are best adapted to anti-tank threats and are capable of repelling multiple attacks from new weapons systems.

"There have been cases when dozens of Ukrainian drones hit the T-90M Breakthrough, but it remained combat-ready," he said.

The Cloak is a synthetic material that is placed over a vehicle like a tarp or a slip cover. The material enormously reduces a tank's thermal signature, so that the vehicle practically blends in with the background surface. Russian armored vehicles are also routinely equipped with anti-FPV drone meshes and rubber-reinforced protection. Additionally, they get cope cages, screens, all-aspect reactive armor and electronic warfare equipment to suppress drone guidance systems.