DONETSK, June 06. /ITAR-TASS/. Self-defense fighters of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic have brought a Soviet-era World War Two tank back into action, the Novorussia news agency of this self-proclaimed republic said on Friday.

Self-defense fighters have recommissioned the 46-ton IS-3 tank which long stood as a monument in the town of Kostiantynivka.

The fighting machine - its name abbreviated after Soviet leader Josef (Iosif in Russian transliteration) Stalin - was 10 tons lighter than the much-acclaimed German Tiger which opposed it in the 1940's.

But its armor was considered more solid, and the vehicle was 50% more powerful, with a 122mm gun easily blasting Nazi tanks. It went into production in 1943, continuing until 1953.

The vehicle's 12-cylinder, 520 horsepower V-shaped diesel engine accelerated up to 37 km/h on a paved road and up to 15 km/h in cross-country conditions.