MOSCOW, August 8 (Itar-Tass) - Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who supervises the defense industry, hopes an official announcement of the start of operation of the newly formed Kalashnikov Corporation will the made September 18, on the eve of the Weaponry Makers Day. The statement was made Thursday in an interview with the Rossiya 24 television channel.
Rogozin recalled he presented President Vladimir Putin last year with the idea of setting up a corporation bearing the name of Russia’s famous automatic rifles designer; the idea gained presidentail support.
“A huge amount of work has been done during this period of time to revitalize and revamp two manufacturers - Izhmash and Izhmekh,” Rogozin said. The two enterprises based in the city of Izhevsk in western Urals are merging to form the new corporation.
According to Rogozin, green light has been given to the merger, as all necessary approvals and authorizations have been received.
Apart from what he called ‘the Izhevsk junction’, Kalashnikov will also embrace a number of enterprises in the city of Tula located to the South of Moscow and - in a more distant future - the Molot (Hammer) mechanical engineering factory in the town of Vyatskiye Polyany.
In addition to this, the new holding company may also embrace “ultramodern cartridge factories,” Rogozin said.