Moscow. 3 November 2004. On 4 November, the Chairman of the Management Board of RAO "UES of Russia" Anatoly Chubais, the famous weapons designer Mikhail Kalashnikov, and President of Udmurtia Alexander Volkov will take part in the opening ceremony of the Kalashnikov Weapons Museum and Exhibition Centre in the city of Izhevsk.

The construction of the museum started in 1996, but was suspended due to insufficient funding. A year ago, during his visit to Izhevsk, Anatoly Chubais had meetings with Mikhail Kalashnikov, the Udmurtia authorities, and potential investors. As a result of this visit, a funding schedule was made for the project in order that the museum and exhibition centre could be opened before the designer's anniversary.

The displays of the museum present the life and work of Mikhail Kalashnikov, and contain samples of the weapons designed by him. The designer has donated to the museum photos, archives, memoirs, video materials, numerous certificates of merit and awards, and his own collection of cold weapons. Besides, the museum features a standardized system of weapons designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov, created both in Russia and abroad.