AK-12

Russia's new-generation standard assault rifle — a fifth-generation Kalashnikov in 5.45×39 mm, with modular rails, a two-round burst mode, and a 2023 revision that directly incorporates lessons from the war in Ukraine.

Overview

The AK-12 is a conventional-layout, select-fire assault rifle developed by Kalashnikov Concern as the successor to the Soviet-era AK-74 / AK-74M family. Adopted in 2018 as the Russian Federation’s primary individual weapon, it retains the long-stroke gas-piston action of the Kalashnikov lineage while introducing a hinged top-cover with an integral Picatinny rail for optics, a retractable stock, and a burst-fire capability — modernisation steps that aim to close the ergonomic and sighting gap with Western and Chinese modular rifles. A mid-production overhaul, fielded as the model 2023, was explicitly shaped by combat experience in Ukraine.

Development

Work on what became the AK-12 began in the early 2010s under the Ratnik future-soldier programme, with Kalashnikov Concern (formerly Izhmash) selected as the lead designer. An early prototype, unveiled in 2012, featured a completely new upper receiver and an ambidextrous charging handle, but the finalised design reverted to a more traditional Kalashnikov chassis while incorporating modern ergonomics. The Russian Ministry of Defence formally accepted the rifle as the 6P70 and began mass deliveries in late 2018, designating it a fifth-generation Ak system, according to Small Arms Defense Journal. A modernised 6P70M variant followed in 2020–21, refining the fire-control group and ergonomics, and then — after the rifle’s first years in large-scale combat — Kalashnikov announced a more extensive “model 2023” upgrade in May 2023, driven by direct feedback from soldiers in Ukraine, per UPI.

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