After hearing about the success of NATO's new SCHV bullet, the 5.56mm NATO, in the Vietnam War, the Soviet Union believed they needed to make their own to be able to fight off NATO. They hired Mikhail Kalashnikov, the creator of the AK-47, to make an SCHV assault rifle. Kalashnikov disliked the idea because he felt the Soviet Union needed to outdo NATO weapons, not copy their ideas. Nonetheless, he made the AK-74, the first gun to fire the 5.45 x 39mm.