France ready to transfer technology for fighter planes, submarine to Brazil

The Associated Press ^ | February 12, 2008

[sukhoi-30mki]

France ready to transfer technology for fighter planes, submarine to Brazil

The Associated Press

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

SAINT-GEORGES DE L'OYAPOCK, French Guiana: France is ready to transfer technology to Brazil so that an attack submarine, helicopters and a fighter plane — notably the French Rafale — can be built there, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Tuesday.

Sarkozy met with his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, in Saint-Georges de Oyapock, on the French border with Brazil on the second and last day of his trip to French Guiana. The Brazilian leader crossed a river for the meeting.

In a joint declaration, the leaders agreed to the construction starting this year of a bridge across the Oyapock River, a largely symbolic gesture for the two nations but aimed at developing economic exchanges. It is to be opened in 2010.

Sarkozy also said France was willing to transfer technology to allow a French attack submarine and fighter planes to be built in Brazil, but he stopped short of any nuclear technology transfer.

"There are no taboos. Brazil is a great democratic power thinking about the conditions of its security. That is its absolute right," the French leader said.

"I said to the Brazilian president that we were ready for the Scorpene submarine to be built in Brazil, that on the question of combat aircraft like helicopters and fighter planes — I'm thinking of the Rafale — to be built in Brazil," the French president said.

The Scorpene class submarine is a conventional attack submarine, but Brazilian officials have said they want the diesel-powered sub to serve as a model for the development of a Brazilian nuclear submarine that would be the first in Latin America.

The Rafale, used by the French Navy and French Air Force,

[Camel Joe]

This would be a good counter measure to the arms Hugo is importing from Vlad the Inhaler. Thank you President Sarkozy, perhaps the rest of the Free world can also start to pick up some of the remaining slack. Uncle Sam is likely to fall off after the next election cycle.

[3AngelaD]

Except that Lula de Silva is best buds with Hugocito.

[untrained skeptic]

The French defense industry is struggling to remain viable. The French aren’t spending money on defense. Europe in general isn’t spending much money on defense. It’s hard to design and build fighter planes and subs when you only build them in small quantities. Each one ends up being insanely expensive because the development costs aren’t spread across a large number of units.