 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| . |  |
. |
US Congress uneasy over French warship sale to Russia
Washington (AFP) Dec 18, 2009 France's plans to sell a powerful warship to Russia, which has unsettled Georgia and other neighbors, has drawn fire in the US Congress where some warned against NATO arms sales to Moscow. Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the top Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has introduced a non-binding resolution urging President Barack Obama to press Paris to cancel the transaction. "France and other member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Union should decline to sell major weapons systems or offensive military equipment to the Russian Federation," the measure says. Ros-Lehtinen's resolution underlines that the sale, estimated at 600-750 million dollars, would be the first time a NATO nation has provided "such advanced technology to Russia" and will likely upset Moscow's neighbors. The Mistral-class warship is a 21,000-tonne, 200-meter (650-foot) amphibious assault ship that can carry heavy-lift helicopters, landing craft, tanks and up to 900 commandos. It is the second largest vessel in the French fleet. In late November, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said it should be sold to Moscow "with precautions" and that Paris should stand with Georgia, which fought a war with Russia in 2008. Share This Article With Planet Earth
Related Links Naval Warfare in the 21st Century
Navy Mine Hunter Finishes Deployment With A BangLondon, UK (SPX) Dec 15, 2009 Royal Navy mine hunter HMS Quorn has successfully completed a challenging multi-national exercise in the Baltic, closing out a five-month deployment as part of a NATO task group. The 1,000-tonne, Hunt Class mine hunter has been deployed with Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 (SNMCMG1) since July and has seen operations on both sides of the Atlantic. The recent Danish-led ... read more |
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2009 - SpaceDaily. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |
del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
YahooMyWeb
Google
Facebook