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French politicians stand up for defence giants’ mega-merger
THREE cross-party members of the French Senate have vigorously defended the mega-merger between BAE and EADS, calling it the “best news the European defence industry has received for some time”.
Writing in a French paper, Jean-Louis Carrère and Daniel Reiner of the dominant Parti Socialiste and Jacques Gautier of the UMP called the announcement of a possible merger “a thunderbolt”, but said that if the merger were to be green-lit, it would be “an extraordinary opportunity”.
They added: “We must not allow it to slip through our grasp.”
The comments come as the merger is facing obstacles politically.
Germany’s defence minister said yesterday that the 10 October deadline should be extended, suggesting there were still many issues to thrash out.