France still confident on Russian warship deal

PARIS, Sept 7, 2010 (AFP) - France remains "confident" it will win a deal to supply helicopter carriers to Russia, Nicolas Sarkozy's office said Tuesday after the French president met with Russia's foreign and defence ministers.

"The latest contacts are encouraging," it said in a statement. "We are continuing our discussions with a lot of confidence. That is the message of both parties."

Sarkozy told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov during the Paris meeting that he "understood" Moscow's decision to throw open to tender the construction of the helicopter carrier.

"There has been no change since the position set out in March by President Dmitry Medvedev on the exclusive negotiations" with France, which include "the question of the transfer of technology," Lavrov told reporters.

Russia had been in exclusive talks with France to buy two 21,300-tonne Mistral-class amphibious assault ships and Sarkozy had previously promised French shipyard workers that a deal was imminent.

But last month, Serdyukov announced an international tender, due to take place in September, for two ships and said the producer of the Mistral -- France's STX shipyard in Saint-Nazaire -- would be allowed to bid.

In June, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told AFP the deal would only go ahead if France agreed to transfer the advanced military technology which French versions of the vessel are equipped with.

The deal is reportedly worth around 600 million euros (765 million dollars) and would secure jobs in French yards, but France's NATO allies have expressed concern about arming Russia with modern Western weaponry.

The throwing open of the tender came after the umbrella organisation of public Russian shipbuilders complained that handing the contract to France without a tender could be illegal.


by Danny Kemp
(c) 2010 AFP