Traditional Urdmurt plaid dresses, a log cabin in the snow, and lots of potatoes. It's not what I had expected of the Russian Foreign Ministry's press tour of the Kalashnikov factory. The tour to the industrial city of Izhevsk, the capital of the Urdmurt Republic in the Western Urals, promised a rare glimpse of the company known for its AK-47.

But first, the handful of foreign journalists on the tour was treated to an unexpected lesson about Urdmurt culture — including a performance by former Russian Eurovision contestants Buratovskyie Babushki. They sang renditions of famous pop songs in Urdmurt, the local language of the republic.

Looking back, their version of the Beatles' "Let It Be" may as well have been a message: a message of patience for journalists with naively high expectations of the openness of Russian arms producers.

More Western sanctions loom

As it turned out, the hotly anticipated visit to the Kalashnikov factory had been replaced by a visit to the factory's museum. At the last minute, access to the factory had not been granted, we were told.

Still, the promise of answers still hung in the air when we arrived at the museum. After all, Kalashnikov is one of the 39 companies that will be affected by a new round of US sanctions. The list includes most of the big names of Russia's military industry. According to the Russian business newspaper "Vedomosti," all in all, the companies account for more than 90 percent of Russian arms exports.

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True, Kalashnikov was already hit by previous sanctions — but from January 29, 2018, firms or countries that do business with sanctioned companies could face American sanctions themselves, which may dissuade US allies around the world from looking to Russia for arms.

From what the guide at the Kalashnikov factory's museum explained, being pitted against the West is not new for the arms manufacturer, which just turned 210 this year. In 1807, there were two other arms manufacturers in Russia — but after a string of wars against France, the Russian empire decided "it was strategically important to build a weapons factory deep inside Russia," further away from the Western border. Still, the new sanctions against the company are clearly a sensitive topic for the Kalashnikov concern.

'No comment'

At the museum, company representatives demonstrated the newest guns, including the newest follow-up model to the AK-47, the AK-204. However, journalists weren't allowed to film or interview any of them apart from the press representative, who promised to provide us with background information but also refused to be officially interviewed or quoted.

Read more: Nazi gun removed from statue of AK-47 founder in Moscow

What we were told about the Kalashnikov company, is that it now produces much more than just automatic guns. The company has recently diversified its production to include motor boats, drones, and is even restarting the production of "Izh" motorcycles. The strategy is in line with Russian President Vladimir Putin's call last year for the defense industry to have 50 percent of their production be "civilian" by 2020.

The Soviet Union is dead, but its weapons live on Seven decades of Kalashnikov The 30-round AK 47 is arguably the most recognizable firearm in the world. The Soviet engineer Mikhail Kalashnikov (pictured above in 2002) created the automatic rifle after World War II. It quickly earned a reputation for being cheap and reliable, with various armies, guerilla groups and street gangs all using the weapon to this day.

The Soviet Union is dead, but its weapons live on Makarov goes to space The 9mm Makarov pistol entered service in 1951 as a staple sidearm for the Soviet army, police and Spetsnaz special forces. Soviet cosmonauts even took the weapon to space as a part of a special survival kit, which was provided to them in case they became stranded upon landing back on Earth.

The Soviet Union is dead, but its weapons live on MiG-29 still flying high The Mikoyan MiG-29 first entered production in the early 1980s and was praised as a highly maneuverable and agile dogfighter. The original model has since been upstaged by both NATO fighters and its more expensive brother Sukhoi, but its variants are still deployed in combat. The Russian air force uses MiG-29s to target the so-called "Islamic State" forces in Syria.

The Soviet Union is dead, but its weapons live on Blast from the past The Red Army used Katyushas to devastating effect against German soldiers in World War II. The multiple rocket launchers were attached to army trucks, making them cheap and highly mobile. Its distinctive whine and appearance reminded the German soldiers of a church organ, prompting a nickname "Stalinorgel" or "Stalin's organ."

The Soviet Union is dead, but its weapons live on S-300 and its descendants In 2016, Russia sold its advanced aerial defense system to Iran, but kept quiet on the details. The Cold War-era version of the S-300 had a range of 150 kilometers (93 miles), and could hit targets at altitudes above 27 kilometers, with the more modern Antey 2500 system reportedly expanding the range to 400 kilometers. India and China are seeking to buy the even-more-advanced S-400 missiles.

The Soviet Union is dead, but its weapons live on Dragunov sniper rifle The Dragunov sniper rifle was first introduced to the Soviet army in 1963 and has since found its way to war theaters across the world. It was reportedly used against US soldiers in Vietnam. In 2015, the SITE Intelligence Group published photos of the "Islamic State" soldiers with Dragunov rifles.

The Soviet Union is dead, but its weapons live on T-34, a symbol of an era The Red Army owes much of its victory over Germany to the iconic T-34, which first appeared on the battlefield in 1941. The battle-tested T-34 eventually became the most widely produced tank of the war and influenced armored vehicles for decades. The Russian military still honors it by having it lead the Victory Day parade. Author: Darko Janjevic



But in our conversation with the Kalashnikov press service, there were clear limits to what constitutes "background" information. Questions about the privatization or expansion of the company and its most important markets weren't included in that category. And sanctions were the clearest no-go area of them all.

A 'global' region

However, it is worth remembering, that even the city of Izhevsk itself, where Kalashnikov is headquartered, was closed to foreigners during Soviet times. So perhaps expecting Kalashnikov to open up its factory doors to foreign journalists — and open its company to their questions — was too good to be true.

Still the head of Urdmurt Republic, Alexander Brechalov, assured us that he now sees the Republic of Urdmurtia as "part of a global world." And he didn't mind commenting on sanctions during a press conference.

Alexander Brechalov, head of the Republic of Urdmurtia

Brechalov played down the importance of upcoming American sanctions on the region, instead pointing to the growing importance of the Asian market for business. The politician also emphasized that though Kalashnikov is a well-known brand around the world, the arms manufacturer doesn't have a unique role in the local economy. "It's just as important as about 25 businesses, which are large employers here — and large taxpayers. But that's all."

When it comes to European and US sanctions, the politician's stance was just as defiant. "Any crisis is a time of possibilities," he said, pointing to the positive effects of Russia's counter-sanctions on the local and national economy. With a tiny smirk, he told us: "Entrepreneurs have already started saying that 'if there hadn't been sanctions, someone would have had to invent them,'" which sounds suspiciously like a bit of Urdmurt folklore.