“An arms builder is attached to his designs like a mother to her children,” said a smiling Mikhail Kalashnikov, 87, at the Friday morning ceremony at the Central Museum of the Armed Forces.

“I’m touched by all the attention I’m getting,” Kalashnikov said after being presented with a military standard bearing the phrase “Kalashnikov — The Pride, Honour and Glory of Russia.”

The Kalashnikov is one of Russia’s all-time successes, as symbolic of the country as vodka and fur coats. In its various models it has been the weapon of choice of guerrillas and dozens of armies around the world.
Kalashnikov began working on the AK-47 model in 1947 while recovering from a shrapnel injury in World War II.
He said his invention was prompted by Soviet defeats in the early years of the war.

“We had no experience. Also, the Germans had automatic weapons and we only had rifles and there weren’t even enough for everyone. That’s why we suffered so many defeats,” Kalashnikov said.

Asked whether he felt any guilt about the deaths caused by his invention, Kalashnikov said: “I sleep well at night. Politicians are responsible for not resolving their problems without resorting to arms.”