Sir Michael had said Russian vessels would be looking at sea trials of the Navy's 65,000 ton warship "with a little bit of envy".
The Russian defence ministry responded that Sir Michael's "rapturous statements ... about the supremacy of the new aircraft carrier's beautiful exterior over the Russian aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov expose Fallon's utter ignorance of naval military science."
The ministry said the Kuznetsov was bristling with anti-ship and anti-submarine missiles, while HMS Queen Elizabeth will have to rely on the weapons of its F-35B aircraft and escort of frigates, destroyers and submarines.
"Like a bee, the British aircraft carrier is only capable of independently releasing planes from its belly closely flanked by a swarm of warships, support ships and submarines to protect it. That is why ... the British aircraft carrier is merely a large convenient naval target."
"It is in the interests of the British Royal Navy not to show off the 'beauty' of its aircraft carrier on the high seas any closer than a few hundred miles from its Russian 'distant relative'," the ministry said.
Sir Michael has repeatedly insulted the Kuznetsov and earlier this year branded it a "ship of shame" for supplying aircraft in the air campaign against rebels in Aleppo.
The Kuznetsov entered service in 1991 in the Soviet Union's dying days and is part of Russia's Northern Fleet near Murmansk.
The Soviet-era carrier has been plagued by technical troubles and attracted some mockery on social media when it sailed through the Channel in October to support Bashar al-Assad's forces in Syria.
Royal Navy sources said there was no intention of fitting missiles to HMS Queen Elizabeth and it would be the role of escorts and jets to deliver firepower and protection in any future carrier group. The carrier began sea trials earlier this week and is not expected to be deployed on operations until 2021.
HMS Queen Elizabeth has been escorted by two frigates, HMS Sutherland and HMS Iron Duke, for its first few days at sea after leaving Rosyth dockyard on Monday.
The Navy expects a concerted Russian spying effort to evaluate the 918ft vessel, which is spending the next six weeks testing the ship's engines and systems in the North Sea and Moray Firth.
Sir Michael said earlier this week: "We will take every precaution to make sure that they don't get too close, but I think they will be admiring her.
He went on: "When you saw that old, dilapidated Kuznetsov sailing through the Channel, a few months ago, I think the Russians will look at this ship [HMS Queen Elizabeth] with a little bit of envy."
This article originally appeared on the Daily Telegraph.
