Russia’s answer to the modernization efforts of its NATO counterparts of having a 21st Century Assault Rifle resulted into the adaptation of the AK-12. While on paper it has a lot of features going for it, the rifle went through its biggest test, the Russo-Ukraine War.

During the early part of the war, Ukrainians find the AK-12 a desirable weapon to capture but over time, problems that have been pointed out by firearms experts became more obvious that Russian units equipped with the rifle, such as the special forces units, began abandoning its use and rather going back to the AKMS and other rifles that have proven their effectiveness before.

Here is a screenshot of a Russian Telegram channel describing the AK-12 in a simple flattering word (use online translation tools to find out):

As to what these problems are, here are videos by two YouTube Firearms channels that airsoft players are familiar with, 9-Hole Reviews and Brandon Herrera, the AK Guy, pointing out the problems with the rifle:

Apart from the issue of using corrosive ammo and the issue of the updated selector switch which is operated with the index finger rather than thumb seen in the earlier versions of the rifle as reported by Technology.org, Ukraine Today also cites issues of difficulty to maintain as it is not easy to disassemble and the 2-round burst mode is also a problem.

In a Reuters report, Kalashnikov Concern has proposed corrections by disabling the 2-round burst to speed up rate of fire, two-way firing modes and adding an adjustable cheek rest. There is no mention if the Russian Defense Ministry has accepted the solution and start producing the updated rifle for use in the field.

It is said that new conscripted soldiers will be testing the updated AK-12 if it gets isssued and it looks like it will be in the battlefields of Ukraine.