Talks on Mistral ship purchase still underway – Russian Defense Ministry | Top Russian news and analysis online | ‘RIA Novosti’ newswire: “Russia and France have not yet agreed on the purchase of a French helicopter carrier for the Russian Navy, a Russian deputy defense minister said on Wednesday.
Russia is negotiating the purchase of at least one Mistral-class amphibious assault ship, worth 400-500 million euros (around $540-$675 million) and plans to build three more vessels of the same class in partnership with the French naval shipbuilder DCNS.
‘We are still in talks on a wide range of issues related to the purchase of French ships of this class. Primarily, these are questions of the cost, quantity, and onboard equipment,’ Vladimir Popovkin said.
Popovkin reiterated that Russia wanted to buy only one ship and build three more under the French license at Russian shipyards, while France planned to sell two vessels and license the construction of the remaining two ships.”