A Look At The France - Russia - Egypt Mistral Deal

Wall Street Pit: How Egypt Got Russia’s Warships

Nobody cooks quite like the French, so it is no surprise that President Francois Hollande has come up with his own recipe to promote democracy in Egypt.

Step one: Sell advanced warships to the country’s military strongman, Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi. Regardless of how the recipe comes out, the deal is likely to leave a bad taste in the mouth of France’s NATO allies. But you can’t please everyone.

In late September, Hollande announced that Egypt plans to buy the two Mistral warships France had originally built for Russia. Egypt will pay 950 million euros (about $1 billion) for the pair of warships, with a “significant” amount of the financing coming from its ally Saudi Arabia. This is a slight discount from the 1.2 billion euros Russia had planned to pay.

WNU Editor: As I always enjoy commenting on these type of stories .... "its always about the money".

France Confirms Sale Of 2 Disputed Mistral Warships To Egypt After Its Russian Deal Derailed

The two Mistral-class helicopter carriers Sevastopol (Bottom) and Vladivostok are seen at the STX Les Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard site in Saint-Nazaire, western France © Stephane Mahe / Reuters

RT: Egypt to buy Mistral warships originally built for Russia from France

France has agreed to sell two Mistral helicopter carriers to Egypt, which were originally ordered by Russia.
"They agreed on the principle and the terms of the acquisition by Egypt of the two [ships]," the French President Francois Hollande’s spokesman told reporters in a statement on Wednesday.

The deal was agreed at a high-profile meeting between French and Egyptian delegations in Paris. The final decision was announced by the president’s office on Wednesday, though the cost of the deal has not been released.

It had earlier been reported that several countries had been interested in purchasing the amphibious carriers, which were originally built for the Russians. The interested parties included Canada, India, Singapore and Egypt, who Paris eventually agreed to sell the ships to. However, negotiations between the two sides almost broke down last week, as Paris and Cairo could not agree on a price for the two vessels, reported La Tribune newspaper.

WNU Editor: It looks like there will be Russian built helicopters on these ships .... Source: Egypt buys 50 Russian Alligator helicopters, deck-based version may be supplied (TASS).

More News On France Confirming The Sale Of 2 Disputed Mistral Warships To Egypt

Egypt will buy both Mistral helicopter carriers that France originally built for Russia -- TASS
France Confirms Sale of Two Mistrals Built for Russia to Egypt -- Sputnik
France sells 2 disputed Mistral warships to Egypt after Russia deal derailed -- AP
France's Hollande, Sisi agree on sale of Mistral warships to Egypt -- Reuters
France to sell Mistral warships to Egypt instead of Russia -- Deutsche Welle
France Says Egypt to Buy Mistral Warships -- AFP
France to sell Egypt two warships previously contracted to Russia -- CNN
Egypt agrees to buy warships built for Russia from France -- BBC
France to Sell Two Mistral Warships to Egypt -- WSJ
Egypt, Not Russia, To Purchase Mistral-Class Ships From France? Talks Underway In Paris Over Massive Military Deal -- IBTimes
France to Sell Mistral Amphibs to Egypt -- USNI