On Wednesday, the Obama administration announced a new round of sanctions that hit Russian financial institutions, energy companies and arms manufacturers, including The Kalashnikov Concern, manufacturers of the AK series of firearms and the Saiga line of shotguns and modern sporting rifles.
In response to those sanctions, which prohibit the importation of any Kalashnikov product, the company released this statement:
“The Kalashnikov Concern, which is part of Rostec U.S., is an important manufacturer of civilian weapons. It should be noted that the production of Kalashnikov firearms in the U.S. is in high demand, with pre-orders exceeding the annual volume of deliveries three times over. Thus, the U.S. government sanctions against the Kalashnikov Concern go against the interests of American consumers.
“The Kalashnikov Concern (formerly Izhmash) — Russia’s largest producer of automatic and sniper combat arms, guided artillery shells, as well as a wide range of commercial products — also makes shotguns, sporting rifles, machines and tools. The company was founded in 1807 and is part of the state-owned Rostec corporation. … The company supplies 27 countries, including the USA, UK, Germany, Norway, Italy, Canada, Kazakhstan and Thailand.”
Full statement can be read by clicking here.
[H/T Guns.com, Max Slowik]