Defying allies, France to deliver first warship to Russia

PARIS/ST NAZAIRE, July 22 (Reuters) - President Francois Hollande won broad domestic applause on Tuesday for defying allies Britain and the United States by confirming plans to deliver a helicopter carrier to Russia, with one backer dismissing their objections as hypocritical.

Speaking on the eve of an EU meeting to discuss sanctions on Moscow over the downing of a civilian airliner over Ukraine, Hollande said late on Monday that a first Mistral warship would be handed over on schedule in October but a decision on a second would depend on Russia's attitude.

It was the clearest signal yet that Paris will go through with the controversial deal despite the Ukraine crisis and came only hours after British Prime Minister David Cameron said it would be "unthinkable" for his country to fulfill such an order.

"Hollande is not backing down. He is delivering the first (ship) despite the fact he is being asked not to," Jean-Christophe Cambadelis, head of Hollande's ruling Socialist Party, told i>Tele television on Tuesday.

"This is a false debate led by hypocrites ... When you see how many (Russian) oligarchs have sought refuge in London, David Cameron should start by cleaning up his own backyard."

The 1.2-billion-euro ($1.62 billion) contract for the two warships, signed by ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy's conservative government in 2011, was the first by a NATO member country to supply Russia with military equipment.

That's true but still, they've been strutting around for several years now all but saying, "We are the EU" and now they're hanging back when it's a golden opportunity to be out front while His Majesty King Barry leads from the rear.

IOW, still seems odd.

It is a matter of efficiency.

The ships are to be fitted with Russian sensors, C4I, and weapon systems after delivery. What the Russians are paying for basically is a modern hull and propulsion system built to 21st century commercial standards. Being build to commercial standards means the structure of the vessel is not as heavily reinforced as a warship. Think employment in humanitarian assistance/counterinsurgency/low intensity conflict scenarios. Perfect platform for intimidating your weaker neighbors.

Yes, they could develop this platform themselves but then there would be all that duplicated effort in engineering and development. Not to mention the time it would take to accomplish this.

I am probably wrong, but I seem to recall the original deal was for two French-built ships with options to build more in Russian yards. If the French limit them to one, the Russians will reverse engineer the single ship they are going to receive and build the numbers they need.

However, nothing they acquire or build can cure the strategic problems for the four Russian fleets created by the lack of direct access to the open sea. Each is constrained either by multiple, uncontrolled straits they must pass through (Baltic and Black Sea fleets) or by being ice bound for part of the year (Northern and Pacific fleets).

Likely to have leverage over French politicians... Bribery is common in case of defense contracts, a part of cash end up in pockets of politicians, Russians being a side in the deal probably have information, who took it on the French side, that’s why France is so impotent during the current crisis. That’s how secret services operate and Putin’s Russia is basically a KGB land. Same goes for “I will have more flexibility” guy, If Russian money was involved in his campaign, they have him in check now.

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