Egypt Buys French Mistrals

French and Egyptian officials have concluded a contract for two Mistral-class ships in Paris, September 23.

French president Francois Hollande has confirmed in an announcement that the Mistral helicopter carriers, which had initially been built for Russia, will be sold to Egypt.

Following the high-profile meeting, Reuters quoted Hollande as saying:

Yesterday, I agreed the price and conditions of this sale with (Egyptian) President (Abdel Fattah al-) Sisi and so France will ensure the delivery of these ships without losing anything, while helping protect Egypt.

However, he did not want to disclose any more detail about how much the deal is worth.

Reuters reported that a French defense ministry source said the deal could be set at around 950 million Euros.

The news of this sale comes as a confirmation of France’s statement that it would not struggle with finding buyers for their Mistral ships.

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Naval Today Staff, Image: STX France