US sanctions against Russia cause spike in sale of AK-47

Washington, July 26: The sanctions imposed on the maker of AK-47 by the US Treasury Department last week has caused a spike in sale of the popular assault rifle in the country, media reports said Friday.

Kalashnikov Concern, the company responsible for the eponymous gas-operated 7.62 caliber assault rifle, has been blacklisted by the US government. But gun sellers in the US say the Obama administration's decision to sanction the company has prompted a peak in demand of the weapon as a result, Russia Today reported.

The sanction does not bar the selling of Russian-made AK-47s within the US that have already been paid for in full.

Orders for AK-47-style rifles and shotguns have "tripled, if not quadrupled" since the sanctions were announced, Blaine Bunting, president of Maryland gun distributor Atlantic Firearms, was quoted as saying by the Huffington Post.

Atlantic Firearms parted ways with its entire stock of over 400 Russian-made guns, causing the distributors to post a warning to would-be buyers on its official website.

"Due to recent import restrictions, we have had a run on our supply of Russian manufactured firearms. We are currently SOLD OUT of the Russian AK47 CAK-132 Wood as of 7/17/14. We are working with our importer to try and acquire what we can but are expecting price increases," part of the Atlantic Firearms website reads.

Shops in Oklahoma and North Carolina also admitted that their stocks were being depleted quickly after the Treasury Department's announcement.

According to Kalashnikov Concern, however, the latest sanctions are only hurting the US market, not Russia's.

"The products of Kalashnikov enjoy great demand in the US," the company said in a statement after last week's announcement. "Preorders on civilian products are three times the annual volume of deliveries. Thus, the sanctions taken against Kalashnikov go against the interests of American consumers," the company said.

IANS