MOSCOW, June 2. /TASS/. Russia’s Ratnik "soldier of future" combat gear excels foreign rivals by armor protection and surpasses domestic variants by all parameters by two or three times, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said on Friday.

"Let me note that the combat gear excels existing domestic variants by two or three times by its characteristics. Moreover, it is no inferior to foreign rivals and excels them by a number of positions, in the first place, by armor protection," the defense minister said.

In line with the Russian president’s instruction, about 50,000 second-generation Ratnik outfits have been supplied annually to troops since 2014, Shoigu noted.

"As a result, the provision of alert units and formations with modern combat gear makes up 42% on average," the defense minister said.

Russia will continue improving the "soldier of the future" combat gear. 

The Ratnik is a system of advanced protective and communication equipment, weapons and ammunition. It comprises around 40 protective and life support elements and allows a soldier to get continuously updated information about situation in the combat area. In addition, the Ratnik includes a self-contained heater, a backpack, an individual water filter, a gas mask and a medical kit.

An advanced Ratnik-3 combat gear with an integral exoskeleton and a helmet visor-mounted target designation system is currently being developed for Russia’s Armed Forces.