1970s Tanks

As the Cold War continued, both the West and the Soviet Union strove to gain, or to retain, allies around the world.

Third World countries engaged in religious and territorial disputes in the 1970s were able to rely on tanks provided to them by NATO or the USSR.

Many of these countries had supplies of surplus World War II tanks.

Some developed their own tanks based on Western or Soviet designs.

For example, Brazil added a new turret to the old M3A1 Stuart light tank so that it could hold 3.54 inch (90mm) gun.

Israel had begun developing its Magach tank series - which was based on America's M48 Patton and M60 Patton tank - and its Sho't tank - which was based on Great Britain's A41 Centurion - in the 1960s.

Magach and Sho't tanks were used in the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

Tanks were used in the Yom Kippur War, the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War, the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the Lebanese Civil War, which lasted from 1975 to 1990.

(Weights are in long tons and kilograms.)