Lie^nso^ du*. ddi.nh mua ta`u chie^'n cu?a Pha'p ?
- From: Nautilus <nautilusmiami@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:38:20 -0800 (PST)
Lie^nso^ du*. ddi.nh mua ta`u chie^'n cu?a Pha'p ?
Very interesting ?
FWD:
The Mistral French amphibious assault ship/helicopter carrier/hospital
ship docks on the Neva River in downtown St. Petersburg, Russia,
Monday, Nov. 23, 2009, with one of the city landmarks, St. Isaac's
Cathedral, in the background. Russia is planning to buy a Mistral-
class ship worth 400-500 million euros (around $600-$750 million) from
France. Russian Navy and defense industry experts are expected to
inspect the ship during the visit.
(AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky)
http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20091123/capt.6fbb037d30114be6a25e3ade922a8c4b.russia_france_navy_ship_mosb104.jpg?x=400&y=272&q=85&sig=CBEGx2omhD3JLLwV0IOFJQ--
France shows off cutting-edge navy ship in Russia
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/eu_russia_france_navy_ship
By IRINA TITOVA, Associated Press Writer Irina Titova, Associated
Press Writer – Mon Nov 23, 9:50 am ET
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – A cutting-edge French warship sailed into St.
Petersburg Monday to show off its capabilities to potential buyers in
the Russian navy, whose pursuit of an amphibious assault capacity is
frightening some neighboring countries.
Russia's once-mighty navy was severely degraded after the fall of the
Soviet Union and it currently has no big ship with the power to anchor
in coastal waters and deploy troops onto land.
Russian officials announced this year that they were planning to make
their first arms deal with a NATO country by buying a French vessel
like the Mistral, a 23,700-ton (21,500-metric ton), 980-foot (299-
meter) vessel able carry more than a dozen helicopters able to haul
hundreds of troops directly onto enemy territory.
The head of the Russian navy has said that a Mistral-class vessel
could put as many troops in Georgia in 40 minutes as the Russian Black
Sea Fleet took 26 hours to land during the nations' August 2008 war.
Moscow declared the Russian-allied breakaway Georgian territory of
Abkhazia an independent nation after the war and sent thousands of
troops there. Russia, Georgia and Ukraine all have Black Sea
coastlines, as does Abkhazia.
The Mistral docked Monday on the Neva River, about half a mile (1
kilometer) from the Hermitage museum. Russian media reported that the
French and Russian navies are planning joint exercises with the ship
this week.
Russian media reports have said a Mistral-class ship would cost Russia
up to euro500 million ($750 million). Officials in Moscow have
expressed interest in buying licenses to build several more in Russia.
"We strongly oppose the sale of such ship to Russia," Nika
Laliashvili, a member of the Georgian parliament's defense affairs
committee, told The Associated Press. "It poses a serious danger to
Georgia."
The Mistral, which was launched in 2006 and first saw service in a
Lebanon refugee operation, is one of the two ships of that class in
the French navy.
Bruno Daffix, a spokesman for the French Defense Ministry's export and
sales agency, described the ship as a "Swiss army knife" of military
ships — able to carry helicopters, land forces, hospitals or refugees,
among other things.
NATO officials in Brussels would not comment Monday on the possible
French navy sale.
The Kremlin has increasingly sought in recent years to reaffirm
Russia's global reach and prestige in world affairs. It has sent its
warships to patrol pirate-infested waters off Somalia and dispatched a
navy squadron to the Caribbean where it took part in joint maneuvers
with the Venezuelan navy and made several port calls in 2008.
The Caribbean mission, aimed at flexing military muscles near the U.S.
in the tense months after the war between Russia and Georgia in August
2008, was the most visible Russian navy deployment since Soviet times.
But despite the Kremlin's ambitions, the post-Soviet economic meltdown
has left the Russian navy with only a handful of big ships in
seaworthy condition and badly crippled the nation's shipbuilding
industries.
Russia has only one Soviet-built aircraft carrier, the Admiral
Kuznetsov, which is much smaller than the U.S. aircraft carriers and
has been plagued by mechanical problems and accidents.
Russian shipbuilders have opposed the Mistral deal, saying the
government should invest in domestic production instead. Navy
officials have argued that license production of Mistral-class ships
would help modernize Russia's aging industries.
The French Defense Ministry's arms acquisition and sales agency has
reported that French exports rose 15 percent in 2008 to euro6.4
billion, thanks in part to sales of the French-Italian built FREMM
multipurpose frigate to Morocco and the EC725 Cougar tactical
transport helicopter to Brazil.
French military exports are expected to rise to euro6.7 billion this
year.
Among France's recent big-ticket sales deals, Brazil has agreed to buy
five French Scorpene submarines, one of them with nuclear propulsion,
and 50 Cougar helicopters for about $12 billion. All would be
assembled in Brazil.
___
Associated Press writers Jamey Keaten in Paris and Vladimir Isachenkov
in Moscow contributed to this report.
.
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