04-23-2012, 04:41 PM
The biggest problem any company will have in Russia is corruption first, followed by recruting, screening, hiring, training, and retaining a viable workforce, especially as the younger-age population shrinks, while substance abuse and emigration increaseson against the backdrop of an aging retirement-age population who are at the end of their working lives, and totally reliant on gubm't subsistence.
With so many countries knocking off the AK, there isn't a large export market for them, and has not been for about 50 years, since the Soviet Union spread the manufacturing base of Warsaw Pact weapons throughout the member states, creating the diversified production market of AK variants in Poland, East Germany, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, and Yuogoslavia. In addition, the Soviets exported the tooling for manufacturing AKM's to Egypt and other Middle Eastern Countries, who have cranked them out on their own for decades without any further major support from Russia.
China also knocked off the AK with the Type 56, but hasn't produced an AK for home military use since the 1970's, and is already on their 2nd assault rifle design since dumping the AK in the 70's.
Scores of nations have been purchasing US-based weapons, mainly M4's, due to the vast superiority of the M4/M16 family over the out-dated AK, which still uses ideas from the first decade of the 20th Century, with nothing really later than 1930's technology in its operating system.
What I have personally witnessed is a default preference for the M4, especially among the Light Infantry and Special Operations units of former Warsaw pact Nations that have finally escaped the Russian sphere of direct influence, but are preparing as Russia is back in a posture of resurgence and control over its satellite neighbors. You out an M4 in the hands of a guy who has used AK's all his military life, and he wants nothing to do with the AK anymore 9 times out of 10.
With so many countries knocking off the AK, there isn't a large export market for them, and has not been for about 50 years, since the Soviet Union spread the manufacturing base of Warsaw Pact weapons throughout the member states, creating the diversified production market of AK variants in Poland, East Germany, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, and Yuogoslavia. In addition, the Soviets exported the tooling for manufacturing AKM's to Egypt and other Middle Eastern Countries, who have cranked them out on their own for decades without any further major support from Russia.
China also knocked off the AK with the Type 56, but hasn't produced an AK for home military use since the 1970's, and is already on their 2nd assault rifle design since dumping the AK in the 70's.
Scores of nations have been purchasing US-based weapons, mainly M4's, due to the vast superiority of the M4/M16 family over the out-dated AK, which still uses ideas from the first decade of the 20th Century, with nothing really later than 1930's technology in its operating system.
What I have personally witnessed is a default preference for the M4, especially among the Light Infantry and Special Operations units of former Warsaw pact Nations that have finally escaped the Russian sphere of direct influence, but are preparing as Russia is back in a posture of resurgence and control over its satellite neighbors. You out an M4 in the hands of a guy who has used AK's all his military life, and he wants nothing to do with the AK anymore 9 times out of 10.