The parent company of French plane maker Dassault Aviation wants to acquire the 20.8 percent stake that telecoms equipment group Alcatel-Lucent holds in Thales, a French newspaper said.

Citing no sources, French newspaper la Tribune said Serge Dassault and Alcatel-Lucent Chairman Serge Tchuruk are separately discussing the stake with the French government. "If officially there are no negotiations, there are however discussions behind the scenes between the state and the two industrial leaders that are continuing with ups and downs, but separately," the newspaper reported on Friday.

"None of the two industrial leaders wants to initiate the negotiations, for tactical reasons," la Tribune said, adding however that the fact that discussions were dragging on may suggest the state is not in favour of a deal.

"This deal has practically no relevance, unlike a deal between EADS and Safran," La Tribune said, quoting sources close to the situation.

The state owns 27.1 percent of Thales.

Alcatel said in February that it had no plans to sell the stake, arguing that Thales, a defense electronics group, was a commercial and research partner.

No one was immediately available at Dassault, Alcatel-Lucent, Thales or the French state holding commission.

Source:Reuters