Discussing the sale of the Mistral

VILNIUS - The mistral is a strong, cold and usually dry regional Mediterranean wind blowing through southern France. Last week, its force was felt in Vilnius. On Feb. 24, Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite met with Pierre Lellouche, French secretary of state for European Affairs, in her presidential palace. One of the primary goals of the meeting was to consult and inform Lithuania, as a strategic partner of France, on France’s possible intention to sell a Mistral-class military vessel to Russia. The ship is priced at 400-500 million euros, according to media reports. Last year in September, Grybauskaite and French President Nicolas Sarkozy signed an agreement on mutual “strategic partnership” which provides for such consultations. Grybauskaite also thanked Lellouche for the NATO Baltic air-policing mission which is currently carried out by France from the military base near the northern Lithuanian town of Siauliai.

Lellouche told Grybauskaite that France had not received an official request from Russia to sell the Mistral yet, and assured the president that, should the deal be concluded at all, the ship would be sold to Russia as a civil vessel, without any military equipment.

“At the moment there is no deal yet - just talks on the political level. The ship will be sold without military equipment, in case of such sale. It would be just a ferry, in fact,” Linas Balsys, spokesman for Grybauskaite, said after the meeting.
Earlier, the Baltic states and Georgia expressed their concern about the possible Mistral ship deal. The Mistral class amphibious ship is able to carry tanks and helicopters, and is designed for attacking military operations.
On Feb. 24, Lellouche also met with Lithuanian Foreign Minister Audronius Azubalis. “It is important to shut the page on the Cold War with Russia. There are three countries which think about such sales to Russia and I’m the only one who gives explanations here,” Lellouche said in an improvised briefing on Tumo-Vaizganto Street after he went out through the doors of the Lithuanian Foreign Ministry. The Netherlands and Spain are also considering similar military sales to Russia, according to media reports.

“It is important to assure that the European Union and NATO partners discuss such decisions in detail, and beforehand,” Azubalis said after the meeting with Lellouche.
The European Council’s Common Position of Dec. 8, 2008, defining common EU member states’ rules governing control of exports of military technology and equipment is signed by French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and mentions criteria for arms sales including: “Respect for human rights in the country of final destination, as well as respect by that country of international humanitarian law.” According to Lithuanian observers, Russia does not meet the criteria on human rights, as well as on international humanitarian law taking into account its behavior in the currently occupied Georgia territories, which all EU and NATO countries, including France, officially recognize as part of Georgia.

According to Audrius Baciulis, columnist of the magazine Veidas, the Mistral ship sale is not posing a security danger to the Baltics or Georgia, however, this purchase appears to be a disgusting bribe, from Russia to Paris. Moscow expects that French President Nicolas Sarkozy will keep his eyes closed on the Russian troops stationed in the occupied territories of Georgia, though it contradicts to Sarkozy’s agreement with then Russian President Vladimir Putin of August, 2008, about the ceasefire in the Russian-Georgian war. According to Baciulis, Russian generals were especially impressed with the good French design of the apartments and bars on the ship. One of those bars has a pole for a striptease dancer.

On March 1, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev discussed with Sarkozy in Paris the purchase of that pole, along with the rest of the Mistral. After the meeting in Paris, Sarkozy said that France and Russia are starting negotiations over the sale of four Mistral-class ships.

According to Audrius Baciulis, columnist of the magazine Veidas, the Mistral ship sale is not posing a security danger to the Baltics or Georgia, however, this purchase appears to be a disgusting bribe, from Russia to Paris. Moscow expects that French President Nicolas Sarkozy will keep his eyes closed on the Russian troops stationed in the occupied territories of Georgia, though it contradicts Sarkozy’s agreement with then Russian President Vladimir Putin of August, 2008, about the ceasefire in the Russian-Georgian war. According to Baciulis, Russian generals were especially impressed with the good French design of the apartments and bars on the ship. One of those bars has a pole for a striptease dancer.

On March 1, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev discussed with Sarkozy in Paris the purchase of that pole, along with the rest of the Mistral. After the meeting in Paris, Sarkozy said that France and Russia are starting negotiations over the sale of four Mistral-class ships.