France negotiating with Russia over huge arms deal

Europe, News April 20, 2015 , by IRIA No Comments

French President Francois Hollande says his country is engaged in negotiations with Russia over a huge arms deal that Paris had suspended last year amid the crisis in east Ukraine.

“We are busy negotiating a solution to the crisis,” Hollande said Sunday on French television Canal +, adding, “We will see if we discuss it Friday,” when he meets his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin during a trip to Armenia.

Hollande was referring to the 1.2-billion-euro (USD 1.5 billion) deal under which Paris was to sell two Mistral warships to Moscow.

However, France suspended the delivery of the first vessel for six months over Russia’s alleged role in the Ukrainian conflict, in a move that strained the relations between the two countries.

Earlier this month, Putin downplayed the non-delivery and said Moscow wants its advance payments to be returned if Paris refrains from delivering the ship as agreed.

“Of course not delivering the ships according to a valid contract is a bad sign, but from the point of view of supporting our defense capabilities, to tell you frankly, this has no importance,” he said.

Ukraine’s mainly Russian-speaking regions in the east have witnessed deadly clashes between pro-Russians and the Ukrainian army since Kiev launched military operations to silence the pro-Moscow forces in mid-April last year.

French President Francois Hollande will meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin during a visit to Armenia on April 24.

The two leaders are attending a ceremony marking the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide and will discuss the Ukraine crisis, the source said.

The US and other Western governments have accused Moscow of having a hand in the crisis in eastern Ukraine; however, the Kremlin has repeatedly denied the accusation.

AR/MR/HJL/HRB