Where does the US gov't get 190,000+ AK-47's ?

[Postman]

This is not a US designed and manufactured weapon.

[datasuspect]

1. china or former eastern bloc countries

[billyoc]

2. Probably Egypt. AKMs. n/t

[NNN0LHI]

3. US in secret gun deal

http://www.guardian.co.uk/armstrade/story/0,,1773106,00.html

Small arms shipped from Bosnia to Iraq 'go missing' as Pentagon uses dealers

Ian Traynor in Zagreb
Friday May 12, 2006
The Guardian


The Pentagon has secretly shipped tens of thousands of small arms from Bosnia to Iraq in the past two years, using a web of private companies, at least one of which is a noted arms smuggler blacklisted by Washington and the UN.

According to a report by Amnesty International, which investigated the sales, the US government arranged for the delivery of at least 200,000 Kalashnikov machine guns from Bosnia to Iraq in 2004-05. But though the weaponry was said to be for arming the fledgling Iraqi military, there is no evidence of the guns reaching their recipient.

Senior western officials in the Balkans fear that some of the guns may have fallen into the wrong hands.
A Nato official described the trade as the largest arms shipments from Bosnia since the second world war.

The official told Amnesty: "Nato has no way of monitoring the shipments once they leave Bosnia. There is no tracking mechanism to ensure they do not fall into the wrong hands. There are concerns that some of the weapons may have been siphoned off."

[malaise]

8. Wow! n/t

[Ganja Ninja]

4. Halliburton of course.

They always get a cut of everything.

[formercia]

5. Poland

was the contractor source from what I read.

Lots of Crusaders there.

[Philosoraptor]

6. The warehouse?

[malaise]

7. Probably China

Here's the breakdown. How do you 'not know' where 30% of your weapons are now?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6932710.stm
<snip>
The GAO said weapons distribution was haphazard and rushed and failed to follow established procedures, particularly from 2004 to 2005.

During this period, security training was led by Gen David Petraeus, who now commands all US forces in Iraq.

The GAO reached the estimate - 111,000 missing AK-47s and 80,000 missing pistols - by comparing the property records of the Multi-National Security Transition Command for Iraq against records maintained by Gen Petraeus of the arms and equipment he ordered.

[ThomWV]

9. The bigger question is why would we own any at all?

Next we will be buying French fighter jets and British rations.

[jody]

10. Minor point but it’s 110,000 AK-47 rifles.

STABILIZING IRAQ, DOD Cannot Ensure That U.S.-Funded Equipment Has Reached Iraqi Security Forces

Although the former MNSTC-I commander reported that about 185,000 AK-47 rifles, 170,000 pistols, 215,000 items of body armor, and 140,000 helmets were issued to Iraqi security forces as of September 2005,18 the MNSTC-I property books contain records for only about 75,000 AK-47 rifles, 90,000 pistols, 80,000 items of body armor, and 25,000 helmets.19 Thus, DOD and MNF-I cannot fully account for about 110,000 AK-47 rifles, 80,000 pistols, 135,000 items of body armor, and 115,000 helmets reported as issued to Iraqi forces as of September 22, 2005. Our analysis of the MNSTC-I property book records found that DOD and MNF-I cannot fully account for at least 190,000 weapons reported as issued to Iraqi forces as of September 22, 2005.

[benEzra]

11. I think Poland was the main producer.

Polish AK's are widely regarded as some of the best in the world, FWIW; definitely on par with Russian AK's (though Russia phased out the AK-47 a long time ago).