Kalashnikov | Moscow | Russia
A total of 8 million deaths caused by AK-47— during conflicts, according to Wikipedia.
The assault rifle was created in 1947 by Mikhail Kalashnikov and in 1949 it was
adopted by the Soviet Union. The AK and its modifications have become the
most common small arms in the world. It was used for the
suppression of the uprising in Hungary in 1956, as well as during the
wars in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq to name a few.
Back
in the 1970s, the AK entered the mass culture of individual world
regions, in particular, the culture of the Middle East. The
Kalashnikov Cult and Kalashnikovization have become common terms that
demonstrate the weapons traditions of the countries of the Caucasus,
the Middle East, Central Asia and Africa. The Kalashnikov assault
rifle is depicted on the coat of arms of East Timor, Zimbabwe and
Mozambique, on the flag of Mozambique, and also on the coin of the
Cook Islands.
Kalashnikov
by sculptor Shcherbakov was installed in the Arms Square in Moscow in
2018. With the appearance of the monument heated discussions arose,
most Muscovites do not like the statue claiming that it is old
fashion and ugly and many people died from this weapon. Even the
former mayor of Moscow, Luzhkov, said that such a monument could have
been appropriate on Poklonnaya Hill, and not in the “peaceful”
center of capital, but “since most of the country's budget is spent
on armaments, this continues the line in a warlike style.
