France Russia Mistral Ships Update: UAE Wants To Buy Aircraft Carrier

The United Arab Emirates is eyeing a French Mistral warship, a government official told Defense News Friday. At least two other Arab countries have publicly expressed their interest in the aircraft carriers, of which there are two.

"Our interest in purchasing the ship is real, it fullfils the capability requirements for our forces," the official from the United Arab Emirates, or UAE, said. "The Mistral ships are in line with our equipment and capabilities."

French originally sold the two ships to Russia in 2011, but canceled the deal over Russia's involvement in the Ukraine conflict. In August, the countries reached a deal for France to pay Russia more than $1 billion, because Moscow had made advance payments before the deal fell through.

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