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Russia and France To Up Military Cooperation
France and Russia have agreed to intensify military cooperation and joint weapons production to counter regional and global threats, the defense ministers of the two countries said.
Which ones?
"The meetings took place in a climate of great cordiality, great confidence and a very practical spirit with a look toward the future," French Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said Friday following talks with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov. Russia and France, both of which firmly opposed the U.S.-led war in Iraq, have intensified political and diplomatic cooperation in recent months. They now look set to deepen military ties as well. Upon greeting Alliot-Marie before their talks Friday, Ivanov said Franco-Russian relations constituted one "of the most important elements" of overall stability in Europe. He said the two countries had substantially activated their relations recently. Both said that their countries want to develop weaponry that could be sold to third countries and to hold joint training exercises to improve the ability of their armed forces to work together.

Alliot-Marie stressed that France and Russia historically had strong military ties that could help the two countries develop better relations in the 21st century. "These relations are old and very strong," she said. She described current ties as "excellent," adding that they should be reinforced. Several of Alliot-Marie's senior aides have family ties to Russia. "Russian-French contacts are intensifying and are developing successfully," Ivanov said. Both ministers said they expected closer ties in defense manufacturing. France and Russia are currently working to develop a new generation MiG fighter plane. Ivanov indicated that other projects were in the works but declined to provide details.
Posted by: Tadderly 2003-05-01
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=13708