The Russian state arms seller Rosoboronexport has decided to withdraw from the tender process initiated by the Ministry of Home Affairs for the purchase of over 20,000 7.62x39 mm automatic rifles. The Rosoboronexport is upset with the fact that the Indian Government tenders seek certain specifications that keep Russia’s AK-103 submachine guns out of commercial bidding.
“The tender documentation is 99 per cent specified by specialists of India’s Interior Ministry for the outdated Kalashnikov automatic rifles produced in Bulgaria under the expired Soviet license. The requirements of India’s Interior Ministry for the purchase of over 20,000 automatic rifles for the reserve of the national police and the border guard service do not allow Russian companies from the very outset to submit their commercial bids,” a source told Russian TASS news agency in Moscow.
Kalashnikov sources also confirmed to The Pioneer the decision to withdraw from the Indian tenders saying that its AK-103 series machine guns do not comply with the specifications of having metal magazine as mentioned in the MHA tenders.
TASS quoted the source saying the Indian side has specified among the tender’s essential terms the availability of a metal magazine whereas Russia has long given up this option and has been using more reliable plastic items and appliances for the assembly and disassembly of the trigger and firing mechanism. It added that this mechanism’s design in new Russian assault rifles of the `100th series’ has been improved and the modern butt-stocks are made of composite materials.
“It was greatly surprised that old metal magazines were important for the purchasers from the Indian Interior Ministry…They are less reliable and subject to rust in a hot climate. The entire world has long been switching over to plastic magazines,” TASS also quoted the Kalashnikov Group official saying.
“No doubt, the Indian side has the right to choose any arms for its law-enforcement, defense and security agencies. In turn, the Russian side has the full right not to act in the role of the tender’s marginal participant and so the refusal by Rosoboronexport to give up the tenders is a logical decision. But if the terms of the tenders are altered, we are ready to take part in them,” the Kalashnikov Group press office told TASS.