Kalashnikov Concern, the Russian defense manufacturer known for its iconic AK rifles, will supply 50 new AK-12 assault rifles to Armenia, according to a report by Kommersant newspaper on Thursday.

“The contract is signed, we are now preparing a small batch that will include around 50 assault rifles. They will be tested and viewed,” the chief executive officer of Kalashnikov Concern Vladimir Dmitryev told Kommersant.

According to Dmitryev, Armenia will be the first foreign country to buy the AK-12 assault rifles.

In August, Armenia’s Defense Ministry spokesperson Artstrun Hovannisyan announced  that an Armenian company Royalsys Engineering signed a manufacturing license contract with Karashnikov to produce AK-12 and AK-15 rifles in Armenia.

Photographs posted on Hovannisyan’s Facebook page showed that Armenia’s Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan attended the signing ceremony in Moscow.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether Thursday’s announcement was part of the August deal with Kalashnikov.

Kalashnikov Concern opened an official representation in Yerevan in 2014. At the time it was announced that an agreement between Russia and Armenia allowed Armenian and Russian defense companies to supply each other with equipment, assembly parts and other materials needed for the production, modernization and repair of various weapons.

http://asbarez.com/177366/kalashnikov-to-supply-ak-12-rifles-to-armenia/