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Russia to produce new-generation assault rifles

Xinhua, February 4, 2015 Adjust font size:

Production of new-generation assault rifles will start in Russia this month, the Izvestia newspaper reported Wednesday.

AK-12 and A-545 rifles, part of the Ratnik combat kit for soldiers, will be produced by the Kalashnikov and Degtyarev plants, an official with the Russian Defense Ministry was quoted as saying.

The Ratnik outfit provides soldiers with about 40 pieces of equipment for survival and combat, including a bullet-proof vest, water filter, night vision devices and the latest navigation hardware.

Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said in January that the Ratnik outfit could feature the fifth-generation AK-12 rifle.

The A-545 assault rifle is the upgraded version of the A-971 rifle designed in the 1980s by Degtyarev engineers.

The Ratnik gear will be put into service by the end of this year, when final tests of the new weapons would also be carried out.

In late January, Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded the Russian armed forces become more modern, more mobile and better-equipped to deal with potential threats. Endi