The Kremlin is unlikely to deploy its top-of-the-line main battle tank to Ukraine over fears of “potential reputational damage” if a T-14 Armata is destroyed in combat or fails to meet expectations on the battlefield, British officials said this week.

Sergey Chemezov, the head of Russia’s defense contractor Rostec, said last week that the Armata had formally entered service in the Russian military but would not be deployed to Ukraine.

The Armata was touted as Moscow’s most advanced main battle tank, but it stalled during a rehearsal of its official unveiling at a Victory Day parade in 2015, U.K. military intelligence officials said on X in their latest assessment of the war in Ukraine.

The 1st Guards Tank Army was due to receive the T-14 Armata in 2021. However, it is “highly unlikely” delivery to any front-line unit has taken place, U.K. officials said.

“The next generation (main battle tank) had been spotted conducting training exercises in southern Russia in 2022, and it was stated by Kremlin news agencies that it would be used in Ukraine,” U.K. officials said on X.

A larger rollout of the T-14 Armata also is unlikely due to requirements to turn out greater quantities of main battle tanks which can be satisfied only by producing other variants, U.K. officials said.

• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.