A Russian industry and product designer is accusing the United States of abetting intellectual-property pirates and directing knockoffs of the Kalashnikov assault rifle around the world, The New York Times reported.
“We see a great number of products which are named after Kalashnikov, my name,’’ the newspaper quoted Mikhail T. Kalashnikov, the weapon’s original designer. ”They are buying Kalashnikovs from other countries,’’ he added.
The United States has reportedly been purchasing or arranging the transfer of thousands of knockoffs of Kalashnikovs, commonly referred to as AK-47’s, to outfit new military and security forces in Kabul and Baghdad.
These rifles have not been made in Russia, where the arms industry holds patents for the weapon in several nations. Instead they have originated in weapons plants controlled by Eastern European states.
The Kalashnikov was designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov, a former Russian tank sergeant, in classified Soviet weapons trials shortly after World War II. Soviet soldiers embraced it for its simplicity and reliability under almost any condition.
Russian arms officials say that no other nation has a valid license to make the AK-47 and its many derivatives and clones, and that to defeat insurgents and terrorists, Washington has been encouraging violations of intellectual property rights.
As a result, Russia is suffering losses in income and jobs, and damage to the Kalashnikov name, the officials say, and would like the United States to shop for the weapons directly from here.
“We would like to inform everybody in the world that many countries, including the United States, have unfortunately violated recognized norms,” The New York Times quoted Igor Sevastyanov, who leads a division of Rosoboronexport, Russia’s state-controlled arms export company, as saying.
American officials confirm that non-Russian Kalashnikov rifles have been provided, with American assistance, to Afghanistan and Iraq.
“We have taken the position that there are important issues with respect to the production, intellectual property rights, and conditions of export of these weapons, and it is important that we strengthen controls in all of these areas,” a State Department official told The New York Times.
Another transfer, arranged by the American-led Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq last year, involved the purchase of Kalashnikovs from Jordan.
The Jordanian rifles sold for about $60 each — less than one-fourth of the price of a new Kalashnikov from the Izhmash plant, according to Rosoboronexport data.
The legal standing of Rosoboronexport’s complaint is uncertain. American officials, analysts, and trade representatives said issues surrounding each transfer would require intensive legal research to resolve.
Meanwhile, according to Kalashnikov, President Boris N. Yeltsin vowed to defend the weapon from market infringement, to no avail. “President Yeltsin said he would do everything,” Kalashnikov said. “But it’s not so easy.”
__________________ U.S. Army
1976-1979
237th Combat Engineers
Heilbronn, Germany
don't know what his gripe is about. the AK-47 was invented for the Soviet military. any and all rights belonged to the state, and Mik got recognition and a medal as was the practice. the state set up all the factories in other lands to make their own.
so why didn't he !!!!! to the Soviet rulers about not getting his intellectual Rubles???
Man he !!!!!s too much about his rifles cant the guy be happy with the fact that hes honored more than any leader in russia and the general russian people love him. And he invented one of the most used gun designs.
Has anybody here seen the Tales of the gun-Kalashnikov rifles?
I don'y understand why he's mad at the US and not these other countries who are "knocking off" his rifles. And don't patents expire? I had the impression that the AR-15/M16 patent is long, long expired, which is why China's making them too.
Why isn't he mad at Norinco, Arsenal of Bulgaria, Jordan, Maadi, Radom, and such?
The US is only having companies that already made them send them to Iraq.
I would note that he has not expressed such sentiments about American civilians enjoying his guns. He has been quite friendly with American AK owners and fans, autographing buttstocks and such. I think he's even an honorary member of the NRA.
Funny how he blasts the knockoffs, because I could have sworn he also said that the Bulgarians did the best job with his design. I have a feeling that article was slanted and that it exaggerated the blame placed on the US.
Another reason we may be buying from other countries is that while interchangeability between all models is good, the Kalashnikovs currently produced for export are the AK-100 series, derived from the AK-74. In order to retain interchangeability with existing rifles, the US may have had to go elsewhere to obtain AK-47 or AKM pattern rifles.
All that being said, I'd gladly pay over four times $60 for an authentic Kalashnikov coming from the Russian plant. I do have three variants of the AK-100 series that come from the Izhmash plant. Even NRAJOE CAN'T TOUCH THAT!!!
__________________
Trust is earned, not... GIVEN away. - Worf
Mikky wants the bling-bling! After decades of over-bearing control, he's finally living the good life as a reformed Capitalist, and he wants the green stuff to continue that good life.
I can see where he's coming from. It's interesting to see such a capitalist attitude arising in a man like Kalashnikov, who was so respected and served the USSR so well throughout his life. It's kind of neat really, he's putting a Russian spin on our old "Buy American" attitude.
I can also see why he'd be a little upset. If I designed the most succesful small arms system in the whole history of modern warfare, I'd want people to come to me for them too. He's not only thinking about his bottom line, I'll wager, he's also thinking about jobs for Russians, and about the pride that would come with arming OUR troops and allies.
I wonder how much of our decision to go with a third party producer of the rifles has to do with post cold war sentiments?
The way they price the Saigas, I doubt money would be a major issue.
::Edit::
And, as far as I know, our patent laws apply only to our products. In the international market, most anything goes, since there's no interenational civil court. The Chinese could start making ARs as soon as they finished reverse engineering them or managed to get exact specs for the guns. However, most foreign manufacturers/inventors, etc have the foresight to register their designs here, preventing US from ripping them off for so long...
__________________ It is known that there are an infinite number of worlds, simply because there is an infinite amount of space for them to be in. However, not every one of them is inhabited. Therefore, there must be a finite number of inhabited worlds. Any finite number divided by infinity is as near to nothing as makes no odds, so the average population of the Universe can be said to be zero. From this it follows that any people you meet from time to time are merely the product of a deranged imagination.
Patent law gets a little cloudy at times. I remember reading that Germany once tried to sue America for patent infringement, regarding the Springfield M1903 being a copy of the Mauser. Just before WWI, IIRC.
Imagine if Sam Colt's descendents tried to get paid royalties on all the knock-off SAA guns! Ruger would have to pay a mint!
Come to think of it, the Ruger M77 is another illicit Mauser clone!! "Book 'em, Danno!"
Germany did succesfully sue the U.S. on patent infringement on the Mauser. The US had to pay royalties to them. It wasnt a lot of money but the first Springfields clearly copied the Mauser design.
Mikhail is mad! 
