Izhmash's chief designer Mikhail Kalashnikov showed Prime Minister Vladimir Putin different versions of the legendary AK-47 assault rifle. "It's the best selling Russian firearm," said Mr Kalashnikov, as he showed the prime minister one of the assault rifles. "Competition was tough even back then," he added. Mr Kalashnikov complained that many varieties of the popular assault rifle are being manufactured outside Russia under licenses sold to foreign manufacturers.

He also asked Prime Minister Putin to establish a holiday, the Day of the Russian Weapons Designer. "We do everything in our power to help Russia secure its position in the arms market. This holiday will give us a chance to meet every year and take stock of our work."

Prime Minister Putin admitted that there are licensing problems but stated that "we've learned our lesson, and we're now organising this work in a different way." He also said that the Day of the Russian Weapons Designer will be celebrated on the day of the adoption of the new government armament programme up to the year 2020.

Izhmash employees demonstrated the new 200-series AK-47M to the prime minister and described its technical improvements in detail. "It has a removable sight and a laser pointer," said Izhmash Director General Vladimir Grodetsky. "The firing speed is still 600?" asked Prime Minister Putin. "Yes, it's still 600," answered Mr Grodetsky. The prime minister also saw cutting-edge assault rifles, tactical support weapons and thermal sights for firearms.

The prime minister also examined high-tech equipment for marking firearms with radio frequencies and the new 40mm 6G27 automatic grenade launcher with 20 rounds. "It covers the entire field of fire," said weapons designers, who complained that there have been no orders for this weapon. "I'll discuss it with the Minister of Defence. The ministry will place enough orders," said Prime Minister Putin.

He also reviewed the line of assault rifles with grenade launchers and learned about the details of the Izhmash programme to develop combat gear up to the year 2020.

Prime Minister Putin spent extra time at Izhmech's stand, the manufacturer of the original Makarov pistol and its upgraded versions. Izhmech head Vladimir Budanov assured the prime minister that his company will continue to manufacture these guns. He also showed the prime minister some plain-barrel guns, including limited-edition guns made for the 65th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War, as well as several other models. The prime minister took a few test shots from the gas-cylinder MR-661K pistol.

Prime Minister Putin then looked at some large machine guns manufactured by the Tula Arms Plant and hand-held grenade launchers from Bazalt Enterprise. These grenade launchers are supplied to the armed forces of Russia and other countries. "They are very good," said the prime minister.

Director General of the Koshkin Design Bureau of Automatic Lines Nikolai Maslyayev told Prime Minister Putin about the cartridge recycling systems developed by his company.

The prime minister also looked at some unmanned aerial vehicles. "They are on par with Israeli aircraft," said Andrei Zorin, the director of Izhmash Unmanned Systems. Prime Minister Putin asked Minister of Defence Anatoly Serdyukov to pay special attention to the products of Izhmash Holding. "How much is this aircraft?" asked the prime minister. "About one million roubles," replied Mr Zorin. The prime minister noted that the aircraft is much cheaper than similar models manufactured abroad.