While diplomats debate whether weapons should be banned in space, Russian space crews hang onto their handguns. Should the space station be declared a gun-free zone? By NBC News' James Oberg.

Russian weapons accounted for a tiny portion of the $4.3 billion American gun market last year, but Saiga sales rose far faster than the overall growth rate of 14 percent in 2011.

The Russian defense ministry reportedly has approved production of a lightweight armored vehicle with a powerful 125-millimeter gun. The 2S25M Sprut-SDM1 is what Western armies call a “mobile ...