Now, ‘Kalashnikov’ to sell umbrellas

Kalashnikov, 83, has been living on state pension in a two-room apartment and never got any royalty on his AK-47 assault rifle, which he developed in 1947 while convalescing from his injuries in WW II.

He got plenty of medals and honours for the invention. But, living in the Communist Soviet Union, he never saw any financial reward.

The German company Marken Marketing International recently announced a partnership with Kalashnikov to begin marketing goods and he acquired a 33 per cent stake.

‘‘The articles are similar to my rifle — reliable, easy to use and indestructible,’’ Kalashnikov said in an interview. Kalashnikov said he had received similar offers from US firms but ‘‘…I thought if an American company used my name for profit it would have been a betrayal of the motherland,’’ he said. (Reuters)