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Russian state arms seller ready to help India build facility to produce Kalashnikov rifles

Rosoboronexport can cooperate with any state or private facility in India subject to the country's Ministry of Defense choice, the company's CEO said

© Anton Novoderezhkin/TASS

IZHEVSK, April 25. /TASS/. Russia’s state arms seller Rosoboronexport is ready to assist India in building a facility to produce Kalashnikov assault rifles, the company’s CEO Alexander Mikheyev said on Wednesday.

The Rosoboronexport chief executive made this statement following the results of a visit by the delegation of India’s Defense Ministry led by Apurva Chandra, the ministry’s director general for acquisition, to the industrial site of Izhevsk-based Kalashnikov Group.

"We are ready to help India construct a facility similar to what the delegation led by Mr. Apurva Chandra saw today to produce the armament that was on display and subsequent modifications of Kalashnikov assault rifles," Mikheyev said.

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"Rosoboronexport has substantial expertise to accommodate needs of our partner. Russia's special arms exporter can cooperate with any state or private facility in India subject to the country's Ministry of Defense choice," he added.

During the visit, India’s delegation was given a tour of the production facility, demonstrating the modern manufacture of Kalashnikov assault rifles of various modifications. Besides, the guests were given the opportunity to test numerous Kalashnikov’s weapons at a practice range.

"The Kalashnikov Group demonstrated to our Indian partners the capabilities of our revamped operation, its effectiveness, flexibility, and capacity to take up production of cutting-edge equipment in almost no time, as well as to boost the production rate, provided more orders come into our hands," Kalashnikov Group Deputy CEO Arkady Privalov said.

"We have made emphasis on providing at a moment’s notice the transfer of technologies essential for the production of our weapons to any defense facility in India. We hope that the issue of setting up the production of Kalashnikov assault rifles gives way to specific solutions in the near future for us to take up implementing our mutually beneficial intentions," he added.

According to Kalashnikov Group, dozens of thousands of Kalashnikov assault rifles are produced annually in Asia and Latin America under the license and with Rosoboronexport’s assistance.

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