AK-47 Assault Rifles To Be Made In Florida

AK-47 assault rifles will be manufactured at a factory in Florida after the company behind the weapons shifted production in the wake of sanctions against Russia.

Kalashnikov USA was forced to cut ties with its Russian parent company when President Barack Obama imposed sanctions against Moscow in 2014 following the annexation of Crimea.

Those sanctions prevented US business contacts with eight Russian arms companies, including Kalashnikov Concern which makes the AK-47.

The US branch of the company began making the weapons in Tullytown, Pennsylvania, last year, but is shifting its manufacturing to Pompano Beach, CNN reported.

It launched a new line of rifles and shotguns at the SHOT Show in Las Vegas last week.

Kalashnikov USA obtained "light manufacturing" approval from Pompano Beach and also has licences from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to import, CNN reported.

But it will not be allowed to sell the weapons or to make ammunition, so will be selling to retailers elsewhere in the US.

Military-style rifles with high capacity magazines are permitted in Florida, but are restricted in other US states.

Kalashnikov USA - which goes under the slogan "Russian Heritage - American Innovation" - has said it plans to produce 10-round magazines for its rifles and shotguns to make them legal in states with more restrictive gun laws.

The AK-47 assault rifle was developed in the former Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1946 and it remains the most popular and widely used assault rifle in the world, with around 75 million thought to have been made.