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US, France clash over an arms sale to Russia
St Petersburg News.Net
Monday 8th February, 2010 (IANS)
The sale by France of a Mistral helicopter-carrying warship to Russia appeared to have soured Monday's meeting between US Defence Secretary Robert Gates and his French counterpart Herve Morin.
Asked about the deal, Gates said he and Morin had 'a good and thorough exchange of views on the subject', suggesting that he had expressed Washington's displeasure.
The French government's defence and weapons agency DGA said Monday that authorities had given the green light for the sale of one Mistral to Moscow.
The Russian government has expressed interest in buying four Mistrals. The request is to be examined in the coming weeks.
Other Western states have been cautious about selling armaments to Russia. The US in particular is concerned about a technology transfer, which could damage NATO interests.
Morin defended the sale, saying Paris believed that it was not possible to act as if Russia had not changed since 1989, and that it was vital for peace and security in Europe to develop a new relationship with Moscow.
'We want to develop a relationship of trust with Russia,' he said.
France invested the record sum of 19.3 billion euros ($26.4 billion) on equipping its army last year, the DGA said Monday.
Despite the worst recession in decades, 60 Rafale fighter jets and 65 war ships and boats were ordered in 2009, the agency said.  Email this story to a friend
Comments on this story
Syed Suhail Khalid
02-08-10, 11:33 AM |
US, France clash over an arms sale to Russia
Who the hell is USA to tell what France should and shouldn’t do?Doesn’t this country ever respect the sovereignty of other nations?
Yet Russia may purchase the Mistral ship with a pinch of salt.I believe that this deal is an insult to the ship building industry of Russia.Russia has the capability to build better ships than Mistral.I trust in Russia’s magnificent manpower and technology.
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anonymous2
02-08-10, 12:37 PM |
NATO expansion
US said Russia does not have to worry about NATO expansion because cold war is over. Now they worried about military tech transfer to Russia. US is trying to hide its intentions. Isn’t that a smart move?
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Anonymous
02-08-10, 06:29 PM |
If US can sell missiles to Taiwan, what's wrong with this?
This bully is throwing his weight around. Russian is a nuclear power, why you are worried by them for having 4 war ships? I think its more cold war mentality for other, not for ownself. This the typical supremacist mentality that created unequal, exploitative and enslaving free people of this world.
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Yahoom
02-09-10, 04:30 AM |
BNM
Russians are using this tactic to copy the french technology. The russians have their best technology behind US and you think they are stupid. Sooner or later france would regreted.
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