After The Modification Road, Russia Again Sends An AK-12 Attack Rifle To The Ukrainian War Zone

Illustration of the Russian army holding an AK-12 assault rifle. (Wikimedia Commons/The Presidential Press and Information Office)

JAKARTA - A number of modified AK-12 assault rifles as a result of use in special operations, have been sent to the Ukrainian combat zone for new feedback, said Sergey Urzhumtsev, Kalashnikov's chief designer on the sidelines of the recent IDEX 2023 international exhibition in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

"Since the beginning of the special military operation, we have been actively working with the Ministry of Defense and the units that were first supplied with these samples. Based on these feedbacks, a list of comments and proposals on the actual operation of these types of weapons were made. We have produced a number of AK-12s with the changes that have been made. This batch has been sent to a special military operations zone to update the feedback," he said as reported by TASS February 25.

According to Urzhumtsev, the two-shot cut-off mode was not included in the assault rifle, as it did not result in a significant increase in efficiency, but actually complicated the design. Other changes are related to the convenience and simplification of the operation of weapons.

In July 2022, Kalashnikov CEO Vladimir Lepin reported that his company had fixed the AK-12 based on experience gained during special military operations.

He also mentioned that a prototype with changes had been shown to representatives of the Ministry of Defense.

The experience of AK-12 operations in real war is a separate matter. In March 2022, the Department of Missiles and Main Artillery (Russian Ministry of Defense) held a series of meetings on the operation of AK-12 in special military operations. Proposals are available for further weapons upgrades," explained Lepin some time ago.

Last November, weapons manufacturer Kalashnikov perfected its homemade lightweight, based on the combat experience of Russian troops in special military operations in Ukraine.

The Kalashnikov group, the world's famous AK-47 assault rifle maker, is raising minor weapons based on its experience of use and interaction with the Ministry of Defense, said Kalashnikov Group President Alan Lushnikov.

As previously reported, Russia modified the Kalashnikov AK-12 assault rifle used by its troops in Ukraine to speed up firing, giving soldiers more control over the shooting mode, state news agency RIA said.

The AK-12 assault rifle, which entered Russian military service in 2018, will disable two rounds of burst cutoffs, deliver two-way shooting mode controls, as well as adjustable cheek backlashes, Lushnikov told RIA.

It is known that the AK-12 assault rifle, developed by Kalashnikov, became the standard weapon of the Russian armed forces, having exceeded the requirement for relentless fire from the Russian Ministry of Defense.