Russia opens Mistral tender beyond France

VILNIUS, Lithuania, Sept. 3 (UPI) -- Pressing ahead with designs to win a lucrative defense contract, France has proceeded with necessary consultations with its European partners on the controversial sale of at least one Mistral helicopter carrier to Russia.

"France knows the position of its partners and I think that it is conducting the necessary consultations," British Secretary of State for Europe David Lidington told Avionews during a visit to Lithuania.

Asked whether the prospective contract would be a bilateral Russian-French deal and whether the European Union was required to also decide on it, Lidington said that the role of the European institutions "was to ensure EU compliance in international trade," according to Avionews.

The consultations marked the latest development in a drawn-out saga concerning France's zealous bid to sell a Mistral-class helicopter carrier to Russia. In recent weeks, Russia announced that despite ongoing negotiations with the French, the Kremlin was holding an international tender for the purchase of such two such vessels.

"The makers of the Mistral are welcome to participate in the tender on equal terms with other bidders," Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said in late August. Mistral is built by French naval shipyard DCNS, a quarter owned by defense electronics group Thales.

Analysts have been quick in interpreting the minister's remarks as the latest form of pressure from Moscow on Paris, in an attempt to win better conditions to purchase the ships in question.

Senior military and political officials in Moscow have said that the purchase hinges on the transfer of key, fundamental technologies. Alternatively, they stress, the purchase would be pointless.

Despite Russia's tough-talk, France insists the deal, estimated at about $1 billion, is set to happen.

Georgia has protested at Moscow's plans to buy helicopter carriers, fearing another conflict with Russia. What's more, the prospective deal has drawn concern from NATO allies apprehensive of the transfer of Western naval technology to their former Cold War foe.

If clinched -- along with rights to construct several other vessels of the same class in Russia -- the deal would mark the most important transfer of military equipment to Russia by a NATO member country.

Designed to attack the shore from the sea, the Mistral class is viewed as an ideal weapon for Russia against possible uprising by nearby countries. The Mistral amphibious assault ship can carry 16 heavy or 35 light helicopters, dozens of tanks and more than 900 soldiers.

Russia owns only one Soviet-built aircraft carrier, which is much smaller than its U.S. counterparts and is considered outdated. Russia was expressed interest in buying four Mistral ships with the prospect also of eventually building such vessels on Russian soil.