Kremlin says ‘attentively observing’ far-right gains in France, Europe

MOSCOW (AFP): The Kremlin said Monday it is “attentively observing” the gains of far-right parties in the EU elections that notably prompted French President Emmanuel Macron to call snap polls.

“As far as we can see, the majority will be pro-European and pro-Ukrainian… but we see the trend of rising popularity of right-wing parties,” spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists.

“While pro-Europeans so far retain their leadership positions, in time, based on what we see, the right-wing parties will be treading on their heels. We are attentively observing these processes,” President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman added.

Asked to comment on Macron’s decision to call surprise elections after Marine Le Pen’s National Rally trounced his liberal party, Peskov said Russia “would not like to interfere in these domestic matters”.

But he said Moscow would also be watching this vote closely, due to the French leadership’s “extremely unfriendly and even hostile attitude to our country”.

Le Pen has historic pro-Russia links but has distanced her party from Moscow since the launch of its military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. She has however criticised the scale of military aid that Macron wants to give Kyiv.