There are also AK 74 ‘pistol’.
Which at least don’t have the stupid looking buffer tube sticking out the back...
http://www.tombstonetactical.com/catalog/arsenal/slr106-58-slr-223-pistol-20r/
And don’t forget you can get Thompson Encore/contender types in .223
Not that I’d want any of them.
I would not be interested in that either, but at least it has a better round than a 5.56. It is all a matter of purpose, e.g, I wouldn’t use a M4 as a sniper weapon, although it is not a poor choice for combat within 100m. On the other hand an AK-47 is probably better. It depends on whether you want to kill or wound.