Kyiv asks Paris to halt Mistral deal with Russia KYIV. Aug 7 (Interfax) - Ukraine has called on France not to transfer the two Mistral-class helicopter carriers that are being built under a contract with Russia, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Vasyl Zvarych said at a press briefing on Wednesday. We are insistently calling for the implementation of the Mistral contract to be suspended. All judicial and legal grounds for this are in place, he said. This contract may be put on hold in compliance with criteria set by Article 2 of the arms export rules that were adopted by the Council of Europe on December 8, 2008, Zvarych said. Handing the Mistrals over to Russia would mean creating new threats for the Black Sea region and the entire Euro-Atlantic community. The sale of the Mistrals to Russia would come as an undesirable signal of Russias impunity for violations of international law, he said. France is a responsible international partner that has always honored its international commitments, Zvarych said, adding that Paris may find it difficult to back out of the Mistral contract. An agreement, which was signed by the Russian and French governments in 2011, stipulates that the two Mistral-class helicopter carriers should be handed over to Russia in 2014. Furthermore, the agreement permits the construction of another two such vessels at shipyards in Russia. Unofficial reports put the cost of each Mistral helicopter carrier at approximately 600 million euros. The European Union imposed economic sanctions on Russia on July 29, admitting that the measures would not affect any previously signed contracts. France planned to transfer the first Mistral-class ship to Russia in the fall of 2014. Paris, however, said later that it would honor its obligations if these deliveries were not subject to EU sanctions.
Posted on: Thu, 07 Aug 2014 20:23:18 +0000
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