France in talks on sale of 100 Rafale jets PARIS (Thomson Financial) - France is negotiating deals for the first foreign sales of some 100 Rafale combat jets, President Nicolas Sarkozy's chief of staff said Wednesday.
'Finally, after 23 years, we are going to sell some Rafale,' Claude Gueant, the secretary general of the Elysee Palace, told Europe 1 radio.
'France is in negotiations and we have strong hopes of selling about one hundred Rafale,' he said.
Gueant did not name countries involved in talks but the United Arab Emirates and Libya have expressed interest in the new generation fighter.
The United Arab Emirates said earlier this month they were considering replacing their fleet of French Mirage 2000 combat planes with the multi-role Rafale built by Dassault Aviation.
French sources said in December that Libya planned to buy 14 Rafale fighters as well as 35 helicopters and military equipment in a multi-billion-euro deal.
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http://www.forbes.com/afxnewslimited/feeds/afx/2008/06/18/afx5127671.html
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