A Mistral ship gets tugged out of dock for a launch in France. A Russian naval official said that if Russia has possessed the ships in Aug. 2008 it could have defeated Georgia in 40 minutes.
RIGA — Latvian foreign minister Māris Riekstiņš has once again criticized the decision by France to sell several Mistral-class military ships to Russia.
Riekstiņš told the “900 Seconds” program on Thursday that the sale of the offensive naval ships to Moscow was not welcomed and could not be considered the best way to lay the Cold War to rest.
Riekstiņš is the latest is a [private_supervisor]growing chorus of dissent among NATO members, particularly the three Baltic states, against France’s intention to sell the state-of-the-art ship to Russia. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have jointly lobbied the U.S. to intervene and prevent the sale, but the alliance has said it has no objections.
“NATO has no formal role at all in this sale,” NATO spokesman James Appathurai told RFE/RL last month. “Of course, allies talk to each other, including on this issue. We are quite confident that the sale would be, when it takes place, perfectly legal, within all the relevant frameworks.”
On Wednesday Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy started talks in Paris on the sale of four Mistral ships — an amphibious assault vehicle capable of carrying 16 helicopters, 40 tanks and nearly 1,000 troops.
If the approximate €1.6 billion sale takes place, it will be the biggest ever by a NATO member to Russia.
French officials have justified the sale by saying Europe needs to strengthen ties, including military, with Russia and close the book on the Cold War.
France advertised the 600-foot Mistral in St. Petersburg last November. At that time Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin frightened many when he said of the Mistral, “I can assure you that if we purchase this armament, we will use it wherever deemed necessary.”
A Russian naval official said that if Russia has possessed the ships in Aug. 2008 it could have defeated Georgia in 40 minutes.
French officials have said they would only sell to Russia ships without the state-of-the-art electronics, nor would it give Moscow the right to assemble the Mistral in its own shipyards. France reportedly has two of the Mistral ship on duty and is building a third. [/private_supervisor] [private_subscription 1 month]growing chorus of dissent among NATO members, particularly the three Baltic states, against France’s intention to sell the state-of-the-art ship to Russia. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have jointly lobbied the U.S. to intervene and prevent the sale, but the alliance has said it has no objections.
“NATO has no formal role at all in this sale,” NATO spokesman James Appathurai told RFE/RL last month. “Of course, allies talk to each other, including on this issue. We are quite confident that the sale would be, when it takes place, perfectly legal, within all the relevant frameworks.”
On Wednesday Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy started talks in Paris on the sale of four Mistral ships — an amphibious assault vehicle capable of carrying 16 helicopters, 40 tanks and nearly 1,000 troops.
If the approximate €1.6 billion sale takes place, it will be the biggest ever by a NATO member to Russia.
French officials have justified the sale by saying Europe needs to strengthen ties, including military, with Russia and close the book on the Cold War.
France advertised the 600-foot Mistral in St. Petersburg last November. At that time Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin frightened many when he said of the Mistral, “I can assure you that if we purchase this armament, we will use it wherever deemed necessary.”
A Russian naval official said that if Russia has possessed the ships in Aug. 2008 it could have defeated Georgia in 40 minutes.
French officials have said they would only sell to Russia ships without the state-of-the-art electronics, nor would it give Moscow the right to assemble the Mistral in its own shipyards. France reportedly has two of the Mistral ship on duty and is building a third. [/private_subscription 1 month] [private_subscription 4 months]growing chorus of dissent among NATO members, particularly the three Baltic states, against France’s intention to sell the state-of-the-art ship to Russia. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have jointly lobbied the U.S. to intervene and prevent the sale, but the alliance has said it has no objections.
“NATO has no formal role at all in this sale,” NATO spokesman James Appathurai told RFE/RL last month. “Of course, allies talk to each other, including on this issue. We are quite confident that the sale would be, when it takes place, perfectly legal, within all the relevant frameworks.”
On Wednesday Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy started talks in Paris on the sale of four Mistral ships — an amphibious assault vehicle capable of carrying 16 helicopters, 40 tanks and nearly 1,000 troops.
If the approximate €1.6 billion sale takes place, it will be the biggest ever by a NATO member to Russia.
French officials have justified the sale by saying Europe needs to strengthen ties, including military, with Russia and close the book on the Cold War.
France advertised the 600-foot Mistral in St. Petersburg last November. At that time Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin frightened many when he said of the Mistral, “I can assure you that if we purchase this armament, we will use it wherever deemed necessary.”
A Russian naval official said that if Russia has possessed the ships in Aug. 2008 it could have defeated Georgia in 40 minutes.
French officials have said they would only sell to Russia ships without the state-of-the-art electronics, nor would it give Moscow the right to assemble the Mistral in its own shipyards. France reportedly has two of the Mistral ship on duty and is building a third. [/private_subscription 4 months] [private_subscription 1 year]growing chorus of dissent among NATO members, particularly the three Baltic states, against France’s intention to sell the state-of-the-art ship to Russia. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have jointly lobbied the U.S. to intervene and prevent the sale, but the alliance has said it has no objections.
“NATO has no formal role at all in this sale,” NATO spokesman James Appathurai told RFE/RL last month. “Of course, allies talk to each other, including on this issue. We are quite confident that the sale would be, when it takes place, perfectly legal, within all the relevant frameworks.”
On Wednesday Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy started talks in Paris on the sale of four Mistral ships — an amphibious assault vehicle capable of carrying 16 helicopters, 40 tanks and nearly 1,000 troops.
If the approximate €1.6 billion sale takes place, it will be the biggest ever by a NATO member to Russia.
French officials have justified the sale by saying Europe needs to strengthen ties, including military, with Russia and close the book on the Cold War.
France advertised the 600-foot Mistral in St. Petersburg last November. At that time Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin frightened many when he said of the Mistral, “I can assure you that if we purchase this armament, we will use it wherever deemed necessary.”
A Russian naval official said that if Russia has possessed the ships in Aug. 2008 it could have defeated Georgia in 40 minutes.
French officials have said they would only sell to Russia ships without the state-of-the-art electronics, nor would it give Moscow the right to assemble the Mistral in its own shipyards. France reportedly has two of the Mistral ship on duty and is building a third. [/private_subscription 1 year]
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