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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 000215 
 
NOFORN 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/23/2020 
TAGS: PREL RU FR
SUBJECT: FRENCH PRESIDENCY ON MEDVEDEV VISIT, MISTRAL SALE 
AND RUSSIA-NATO ISSUES 
 
PARIS 00000215  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
Classified By: Political Minister-Counselor Kathleen Allegrone for reas 
ons 1.4(b) and (d). 
 
¶1.  (C/NF) Summary.  During a wide-ranging conversation on 
February 22, a relatively pessimistic Francois Richier, 
Strategic Affairs Advisor to President Sarkozy, said France 
sees some opportunities, and potential pitfalls, ahead as 
they work with Russia on a new UN Security Council Resolution 
on Iran, take next steps on the European Security discussion, 
address Missile Defense and prepare the upcoming NATO summit 
in Lisbon.  French officials found the recent release of the 
newly updated Russian Strategic Doctrine to be worrying and 
little different from that of ten years ago.  Paris expects 
to raise some of these issues in the upcoming March 2 visit 
of Russian President Medvedev to France.  Richier noted that 
the potential sale of the French Mistral ship to Russia has 
"not really progressed" largely because Russia has yet to 
decide what it wants and put a firm request on the table. 
However, he noted that Russia is now also interested in 
purchasing some French armored vehicles for the Russian 
police.  End Summary. 
 
-------------------------- 
MEDVEDEV VISIT TO PARIS 
-------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (C/NF) Richier described that the upcoming Medvedev visit 
to Russia as focused mainly on a bilateral agenda.  However, 
he noted that the two principal foreign affairs issues which 
President Sarkozy plans to raise are: 1) the need to move now 
on Iran sanctions; and (2) the Russian proposals for a 
European Security treaty.  On the former, Richier said it is 
difficult to know what the Russian position is on sanctions 
against Iran, as their position has merely shifted from a 
firm "no" of a few years ago to a mere willingness to discuss 
the issue, without any specific details.  Sarkozy intends to 
speak seriously with Medvedev to make progress.  On the 
latter, Richier admitted that French officials were not sure 
how to approach the Russian proposals for a new European 
security treaty, particularly in light of the release of the 
nominally "updated" Russian strategic military doctrine which 
continues to target NATO as the primary threat.  The Elysee 
hopes to learn if Medvedev "genuinely thinks that way" or if 
it merely reflects the continuing influence of the "old 
guard" in the Russian military.  Even if it is simply a 
triumph of the old guard, Richier conceded that would show 
that Medvedev has no real power.  "So either way, it isn't 
good," he stated. 
 
--------------------------- 
POTENTIAL MISTRAL SALE 
--------------------------- 
 
¶3.  (C/NF) Richier informed us that the potential sale of the 
French Mistral ship to Russia has "not really advanced" 
largely because they have no response to their proposals and 
no actual order from Moscow.  He claimed that the Netherlands 
and Spain remain interested in selling their own versions of 
the warship to Russia.  Richier speculated that the Russian 
navy may in fact prefer the French ship, but it is not really 
the military leaders who will make the final decision, which 
will take into account cost and political considerations.  At 
the same time, he stated that he was "unsure" why the 
Russians would choose the Mistral, as it is not a "real war 
ship" and to equip it as such would "take the entire Russian 
navy budget."  Richier acknowledged that the potential sale 
has raised concerns among some of Russia's neighbors and 
informed us that State Secretary for European Affairs, Pierre 
Lellouche, would travel soon to the three Baltic countries, 
Ukraine and Poland to try to address their worries.  Richier 
added that Moscow has recently expressed interest in 
purchasing French armored cars for the Russian police. 
 
--------------------------- 
RUSSIA-NATO 
--------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (C/NF) Finally, Richier speculated about the role of 
Russia at the November NATO summit in Lisbon.  He noted that 
Moscow remained "irritated" by missile defense planning and 
that its rhetoric was once again mounting, so that would be a 
continuing issue for engagement.  He observed that since 
there was no summit meeting of the NATO-Russia Council (NRC) 
last year in Strasbourg, the last time leaders of NATO and 
Russia met together was in Bucharest in 2008 when Putin was 
President.  He expressed concern that Russian leaders might 
feel "sidelined" if there is no NRC this year, particularly 
if there is no clear progress in the OSCE Corfu Process to 
address Russian security concerns.  Richier admitted that 
 
PARIS 00000215  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
France had no official position on this issue as of yet, but 
noted that it was worth some thought and discussion, as we 
all try to find the best means to work together with Russia. 
PEKALA