NRA-Russia Began with Gold-Plated Assault Rifles, Not Trump

The relationship between the National Rifle Association and Vladimir Putin’s government in Russia has mainly been seen as an effort to elect Donald Trump president, but the relationship dates back to at least 2010 and was cemented around the business of selling guns. The NRA’s first known contact with the Russians was in 2010, when the organization partnered with an American gunmaker, Arsenal, Inc., and Russian gun designer Mikhail Kalashnikov to raise money for the NRA’s lobbying arm, the Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA). Kalashnikov signed 500 silver- and gold-plated <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AK-74" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">AK-74 assault rifles</a> manufactured by Arsenal that were sold to American civilians for a <a href="https://www.gunsamerica.com/blog/5000-ak-47-commemorative-k-var-milled-ak-47s/" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">hefty sum</a> ($3,500 for silver, $5,000 for gold). Total net for the NRA-ILA: $1.9 million. <a href="https://laddeveritt.medium.com/nra-russia-began-with-gold-plated-ak-47s-not-trump-f325373c31d4">Website</a>