French President Francois Hollande said Sunday that negotiations with Moscow were under way to find a solution to a dispute over the sale of two Mistral warships, frozen over the Ukraine crisis.

"We are busy negotiating a solution to the crisis," over the 1.2 billion euro ($1.5 billion) sale, Hollande said on French television, adding that he may discuss the issue with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin during a meeting in Armenia Friday.