The Degtyaryov hand-held machine gun (RPD) is a 7.62 mm light machine gun that was designed by the Soviet Union in 1945 during World War II. From 1945 to 1961 it was the main LMG in service with the Soviet Army, but it was later replaced by the RPK. The RPD still saw service in countries that imported weapons from the Soviets such as the Warsaw Pact, and the weapon was used in several wars from the 1960s to 2010s by former Soviet allies and guerrillas; these wars included the Iran-Iraq War, Gulf War, Iraq War, Afghanistan War, Iraq War, Libyan Civil War, and Syrian Civil War.