In Rock Island Auction Company’s recently ended December 2018 Premiere Firearms Auction, among a huge variety of rare and unique firearms, there were a couple of lots that should be especially interesting for the Silah Report audience. Particularly, in this article, we’ll take a brief look at the Tariq pistol that was allegedly presented to Saddam Hussein.
Beretta
Pakistan’s locally made Beretta 92 FS or M9
With the advent of 9 mm in Pakistan the markets were filled with imported 9 mm pistols. These handguns were imported in big numbers from China, Russia, Turkey, Philippines, Brazil, South Korea and Czechoslovakia (to name a few). And off course a scarce quantity of European and Amercian handguns, much coveted and wanted by anyone and everyone who could afford them, namely the Beretta, Sig Sauer, HK, Smith & Wesson, Springfield, Browning and Glock (which somehow has attained a cult status in Pakistan, for whatever reasons) made it to our shores. So it was obvious that the “Darra boys” had to make copies of the hottest selling items and the logical choice was Beretta 92 FS and Glock 19. So a lot of arms manufacturers started with the 92 FS thanks to modern machinery and methods. This small pictorial review will cover the 92 FS.
Beretta and Sako Presence at Turkmenistan Independence Day Parade
At this year’s 26th anniversary of the Independence of Turkmenistan, Beretta and Beretta owned Sako came out in large numbers among the small arms on parade. Of course, the Beretta 5.56x45mm NATO ARX160 took center stage among both the line troops and special operations component, with the SF component also being armed with IWI 5.56x45mm NATO Tavor TARs.
Turkmenistan is often lampooned for its bizarre civic culture that combines national symbols with its leader’s personality cult. But judging by the recent military parade in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan’s armed strength is for the sole purpose of territorial defense. Unlike North Korea, Turkmenistan doesn’t pose a threat to global peace. It’s also trying to crawl out of an economic mess caused by its reliance on energy exports.
Neither does Ashgabat appear to have regional ambitions. On the contrary, it faces a grave threat from its border with Afghanistan where militants tied to either the Taliban or ISIS are active. In the greater scheme of things, Turkmenistan’s imperative is balancing its aspirations with the looming strength of China, India, Iran, Russia and Turkey.
Yet even if it’s overshadowed by larger countries in its neighborhood, when it comes to mass calisthenics, very impressive rifle drills, and costumed Turkmen archers trotting on horseback, Turkmenistan makes sure it surpasses its neighbors in pageantry.
Along with the ARX160s, there were some mounted with Beretta’s accompanying 40x46mm low-velocity GLX-160 UBGL.
And a designated Marksmans variant.
It appears that Turkmenistan has also purchased the IWI Negev light machine gun as well.
But the other significant update was with the precision rifles, that of Sako TRG M10s. These are probably chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO but could be in .338 Lapua Magnum. They were shown in a tan finish.
Kazakh Armed Forces Preparing for a Military Parade
Various branches of Kazakh Armed Forces are preparing for the military parade which will be held on May 9, 2017. The parade is dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the establishment of Kazakh Armed Forces. Although there was no new firearm spotted (yet), it is still interesting to take a look at some of them in the hands of Kazakh military personnel.
In the above picture, the special forces units carry Beretta ARX 160 rifles chambered in 7.62x39mm, which also feeds from AKM pattern magazines. They also have EOTech 512 series reflex sights and GLX160 grenade launchers mounted on the rifles.
Other than mentioned firearms, the rest (majority) of the soldiers taking part in the parade are equipped with AK-74 and AK-74M rifles.
Interesting to note how the weapons from the ’70s are still capable and are the main weapons of many armies. Also, newer weapon systems find their way into the arsenals blending with existing ones. In that sense, it was a wise choice made by Beretta to not only chamber their ARX160 rifle in 7.62x39mm caliber, but also design it to take AK magazines. As you can see that configuration allows countries like Kazakistan to adopt modern rifles without any trouble concerning logistics, compatibility and interchangeability.
If anything small arms related appears during the actual parade, we’ll post about it here on Silah Report.
AR70s in Iraq
Images gained from Iraqi social media groups have indicated the transfer and usage of 5.56x45mm NATO Beretta AR70s. Specifically there has been one rifle spotted with the Shi’a Al-Abbas Brigade. The Al-Abbas Brigade was originally formed in Syria in 2012 but after heavy losses with Daesh moved to Iraq in 2014.
Some of these AR70s appear to have been modified with Airsoft picatinny rail handgun systems to provide a picatinny interface. The Italian rifle never received an upgrade to a picatinny system having been replaced by Beretta’s ARX-160 instead. The rail in the title photograph looks to be a very common AR Airsoft rail coming out of China with the oval vents, very similar to many handguards from UTG. However the example below might be one of the Daniel Defense fakes with the 12 o’clock gas tube vents actually installed at the 6 o’clock position. Both examples show an M16A4 handguard mounted to a rail section that covers the top portion of the rifle, leading S.R. to believe that they might originate from the same source or small arms market.
