Korea's K7 Submachine Gun Shows up at Iran Arms Expo

Korea's K7 submachine gun has been displayed at a firearms expo in Iran, which is prevented from buying arms under UN sanctions.

According to a military source here on Monday, the Iranian government recently held an expo to show off its self-reliance in weapons development. It was attended by senior Iranian military officers including the chief of naval operations.

On display were remodeled versions or copies of Russian weapons as well as Iran's own AR-15 and AK-103 rifles.

But one firearm on display was probably Korea's K7 submachine gun. The K7 is a 9×19 mm Parabellum submachine gun with an integral suppressor. It is used chiefly by special forces.

It was developed in 2000 and only produced in a small quantities. "The K7 displayed in Iran seems to be real, not a reproduction," the source added.

The U.S. has tightened sanctions on Iran since President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from a nuclear deal signed by his predecessor Barack Obama. The ban on Iran's exports of conventional weapons has been lifted recently, but it still needs approval from the UN Security Council each time if it wants to import them.

"It's possible that K7s that were exported to Indonesia in the past have been smuggled to Iran," a government official here speculated.