Moscow doubts French reputation of reliable partner amid Mistral deal situation
MOSCOW. Sept 4 (Interfax) - The halted delivery of Mistral-class helicopter carriers to Russia casts doubt on the reputation of Paris as a reliable partner, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
"The reputation of France as a reliable partner which honors its contract commitments has been sacrificed to U.S. political ambitions. Where have the times when Paris refused to yield to the U.S. pressure, for instance, in the issue of Iraq, gone?" ministry deputy spokesperson Maria Zakharova wrote on Facebook.
French President Francois Hollande announced the halt of the delivery of the first Mistral-class helicopter carrier to Russia on Wednesday. The statement was made after Hollande had met with the French Defense Committee and concluded that conditions "were not right" for the delivery of the first helicopter carrier to Russia.
A source in the NATO administration told Interfax on the same day that the alliance had nothing to do with the French president's decision not to deliver the Mistral-class ship to Russia. He said it was a sovereign decision of a member country of the organization.
The source added that certain NATO alliance members had told France it was the wrong time to supply such weapons to Russia but NATO as a whole did not pressure Paris.
The Russian government's Military Industrial Commission Deputy Chairman Oleg Bochkarev told Interfax-AVN on Thursday, Russia has not received any documents from France regarding a possible repeal of the contract for the delivery of Mistral-class helicopter carriers to the Russian Navy.
