俄罗斯揭幕了米哈伊尔·卡拉什尼科夫（Mikhail Kalashnikov）的雕像，他是全球最著名的一款步枪的创造者。
The 7.5-meter tall statue features Kalashnikov holding his famous rifle.
这座7.5米高的雕像以卡拉什尼克夫手持自己设计的著名步枪为特色。
Mikhail Kalashnikov was born in a rural area of Russia in 1919. As a boy, Mikhail was interested in making farm equipment. He was born into a farming family, after all.
卡拉什尼克夫于1919年出生在俄罗斯的农村地区。他孩时就对制造农业设备怀有兴趣，毕竟他出身在一个务农家庭。
But, later he became a soldier and was injured in World War Two.
但是后来他成为了一名士兵，并在二战中受伤。
Kalashnikov and some other soldiers decided that the Russian army needed better rifles than those used by the Germans.
卡拉什尼克夫和一些士兵判断，俄罗斯军队需要比德国人所使用的更好的步枪。
So Kalashnikov started designing his own.
所以卡拉什尼克夫开始自行设计步枪。
His first weapons were not very good. But in 1947 he designed the weapon that came to be known as the AK-47. It got its name because it was an automatic rifle designed in 1947. An automatic rifle does not have to be loaded by hand after each shot.
他的第一把步枪不是非常好。但是1947年他设计的步枪后来被称为AK-47。这款自动步枪的得名是因为它是1947年设计的。自动步枪在每次射击后无需手动上膛。
The weapon gained popularity because it worked equally well in hot, wet jungles and cold, dry mountains. It was also easy to operate and take care of. Some users can take an AK-47 apart in just 30 seconds.
这把步枪大受欢迎，因为它在炎热潮湿的丛林以及寒冷干燥的大山里都非常好用，并且还易于操作和维护。有些用户可以在短短30秒内分拆一把AK-47步枪。
Russia sent the guns to its allies and sold the design to other countries so they could produce their own versions. Some experts think 70 million Kalashnikov rifles have been made. They say the AK-47 and its more modern versions represent 20 percent of the world's firearms.
俄罗斯将这些枪支送到其盟国，并将该设计卖给了其它国家以便他们可以生产自己版本的AK-47。有些专家认为目前已经制造出了7千万支卡拉什尼克夫步枪(即AK-47)。他们表示，AK-47及其更新版本占到了全球枪支的20%。
Both Russian President Vladimir Putin and his minister of culture see the AK-47 as important to the identity of Russia.
俄罗斯总统普京及其文化部长都认为AK-47对俄罗斯特性来说非常重要。
Putin said: "The Kalashnikov rifle is a symbol of the creative genius of our people."
普京表示：“卡拉什尼克夫步枪是俄罗斯人民创造天赋的象征。”
While Russian leaders celebrated Kalashnikov's memory with the statue, some activists demonstrated at the event.
虽然俄罗斯领导人以雕像纪念卡拉什尼克夫，一些活动人士在活动上举行了示威。
The protesters said a person who created an instrument of death should not be considered a hero. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported one protester calling the statue "loathsome" and "trash."
这些示威者表示，创造杀人工具者不应该被视为英雄。自由欧洲电台/自由电台报道称，有一名抗议者称这座雕像“令人生厌”，就是“垃圾。”
For many years, Kalashnikov stood up for his weapon as a way to defend Russia. He blamed politicians for failing to find peaceful solutions to disputes. "I sleep well," he once said.
多年来，卡拉什尼克夫都坚称他的武器是为了保护俄罗斯。他指责政治家未能找到和平解决冲突的办法。他曾说：“我睡得很好（我没有良心不安）。”
But, a few months before his death in 2013, Kalashnikov expressed second thoughts.
但是，卡拉什尼克夫在2013年去世前的几个月表达了第二种想法。
He wrote a letter to the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church. In the letter, he asked whether, as the creator of a weapon, he was responsible for the deaths that came from its use.
He called his worry "unbearable."
他写信给俄罗斯东正教的领袖。他在信中问到，作为武器的创造者，他是否要对那些死在枪下的亡魂负责。
The church leader said the deaths were not Kalashnikov's fault, but the fault of those who used the rifle with "evil intentions."
教会领袖表示，这些枪下亡魂不是卡拉什尼克夫的错，而是带着“罪恶意企图”使用这把步枪的那些人士的错。
I'm Dan Friedell.
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