MOSCOW/PARIS - The delivery of the Vladivostok amphibious assault ship and helicopter carrier, a Mistral-class vessel built by STX France, may be launched as soon as next week, a military diplomatic source told Interfax-AVN on Feb. 12.
“The Elysee Palace could issue a command on the Mistral’s delivery as early as at the beginning of next week so that the ship be fully ready for the delivery to the Russian side in the first half of March,” the source said.
The success of the Normandy Quartet meeting in Minsk provides grounds for Paris to immediately launch the Vladivostok’s delivery procedure, which should help Paris save its face before allies and at the same time reaffirm its reputation as a reliable supplier of weapons, the source said.
