Izhmash, the manufacturer of Kalashnikov AK assault rifles, said its sales were up 57.4 percent last year at 5.73 billion rubles (about $190 million).

Civilian weapon sales rose 25 percent and a similar increase is expected this year, Izhmash press secretary Yelena Filatova said.

Production is to increase 30 percent this year, to 5.1 billion rubles, she added, according to RIA Novosti.

In September 2011, Chief of the Russian General Staff Nikolai Makarov said the Defense Ministry had stopped procuring AK-74 rifles because of oversupply, indicating that new models of small arms and light weapons would replace it.

The AK-74 is the most widely used and well-known assault rifle in the world. It is used by some 50 armies around the world, as well as countless guerrilla movements.