French right removes section on deepening relations with Russia from its website - Politico
Kyiv • UNN
France's far-right National Rally party has quietly removed from its website some of its controversial defense policy proposals, including those advocating deepening diplomatic relations with Russia, withdrawal from NATO's Joint Military Command and termination of cooperation projects with Germany, in a bid to bolster its credibility ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections, media reports say.
In France, Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella's National Rally party has secretly removed some of its defense policy proposals from its website, including those related to deepening diplomatic relations with Russia, Politico reported, UNN writes.
Details
"Now that the countdown to early elections in France is underway, is the National Rally wavering on its Russia-friendly defense program? The far-right party has quietly removed some of its defense policy proposals from its website, removing sections that called for deepening diplomatic relations with Russia, halting cooperation projects with Germany, and withdrawing from NATO's integrated military command," the newspaper writes.
As the publication notes, as the National Rally appears set to make significant gains in parliament and open the door to government, "the party is seeking to strengthen its credibility on the world stage before French voters head to the polls on June 30 and July 7.
"The deleted proposals emerged during Marine Le Pen's 2022 presidential campaign, when her party released 17 thematic booklets outlining her proposals on all policy areas. While 16 of the booklets remain online, the one on defense was removed from the website shortly after June 11. It can still be found online on a page that is not linked to the party's website," the publication points out.
In its manifesto, the National Rally reportedly advocated distancing itself from Washington while seeking to engage with Moscow. Noting that Washington "does not always behave like an ally of France," Le Pen's 2022 program suggested seeking "an alliance with Russia on certain issues," such as European security or the fight against terrorism.
The withdrawn document also stated that France should immediately withdraw from NATO's unified military command, the newspaper writes.
The deleted document, the newspaper notes, also proposed to "put an end" to projects of cooperation with Germany in the military sphere, given "deep and irreconcilable doctrinal, operational and industrial differences with Berlin." These include plans to jointly develop battle tanks and next-generation fighter jets.
In recent months, the National Union has softened some of its controversial positions, the newspaper points out.
In March, National Rally MPs reportedly abstained from voting on military aid to Ukraine, while MPs from the leftist Rally for France voted against. In the same month , rising star and National Rally president Jordan Bardella said that France should wait until the war in Ukraine is over before leaving the military alliance's joint command. Bardella will become prime minister if the National Rally wins the parliamentary elections, the newspaper notes.
"In its program for the 2024 European elections, the party did not repeat these proposals. Instead, it said that "Russia [is] violating international law and provoking a revision of the international order," the publication says.
In recent days, the National Union is also said to have backed away from some of its most expensive economic proposals, "as the prospect of the far-right coming to power scares the markets.
In a conversation with the publication, a representative of the National Union said that Bardella would present his program, including defense, in the coming days.
