The Russian army has been putting one of the world's biggest military robots through its paces, acting as a further reminder of Russia's increasing military strength.

The Vikhr remote-controlled tank was being tested on a military testing ground at a classified location in Russia.

The clips shows the unmanned tank traveling through a dusty path, navigating through stretches of water and then firing into the distance from its machine gun, all without a human in sight.

Unmanned: Despite being controlled remotely the 'Robot Tank' retains the ability to traverse rugged terrain and fire rounds from a machine gun

Huge: The tank features a 30 mm automatic gun and six anti-tank guided missiles

The huge machine is 6.7 metres (22 feet) long, stands 3.3 metres (10.8 feet) tall and weighs about 14.7 tonnes.

The state-of-the-art robot features a 30 mm automatic gun and six anti-tank guided missiles. It can also be equipped with machine guns or a flamethrower.

It is operated remotely by a driver who can see where it is going through a camera link up, as well as the wider picture via a drone.

The robot can be operated from a distance and can manoeuvre its way across a variety of terrains.

It is capable of travelling at speeds up to 60 kph (37 mph) on dry land and 10 kph (6.2 mph) through water.

The Vikhr can lock onto a target and can follow it, while repeatedly firing, until it is completely destroyed.

The video of the huge robot tackling an assault course, that also included hills, is proving popular with viewers after being posted online.

Outlay: Russia boosted its military spending to $69.2 billion in 2016 and is now only behind the US and China in terms of its defense budget

Robust: The robot can be operated from a distance and can manoeuvre its way across a variety of terrains

Rugged: It is capable of travelling at speeds up to 60 kph (37 mph) on dry land and 10 kph (6.2 mph) through water

Fire: The Vikhr can lock onto a target and can follow it, while repeatedly firing

Netizen 'Azx Rack' said: 'Looks freaking powerful. Love it, hope it has a great future.'

And 'ttx777' added: 'Pretty impressive how well it moves considering the incredible weight. Finally the guys in charge of planning and manufacturing have managed to wow us.'

Vikhr was reportedly developed by the Russian Ministry of Defence's Main Research and Testing Centre for Robotics.

The news comes as a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), released last week, revealed that Russia boosted its military spending to $69.2 billion in 2016.

The 5.9% increase means Russia is only behind the United States and China in the ranking of top military spenders.