French defense minister says Russia may never get the warships it ordered due to Ukraine
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Russia's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, speaks during a news conference at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) ministerial meeting in the Exhibition Center in Basel, Switzerland, on Friday, Dec. 5 2014. (AP Photo/Keystone,Georgios Kefalas) (The Associated Press)
France's defense minister has suggested that two warships ordered by Russia may never be delivered.
Last month, President Francois Hollande suspended the delivery of the first of the ships "until further notice" due to tensions over Russia's actions in Ukraine. It was the second postponement of the delivery.
Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in a TV interview on Friday that the delivery may never happen if the situation in Ukraine doesn't change.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The Russians must realize this," he said on BFM TV.
Russian annexed Crimea and is accused of supplying pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine with manpower.
The sale of the two helicopter carriers would be the biggest arms transaction by a NATO country to the Kremlin.