The far-right French party National Rally has quietly removed proposals to deepen diplomatic relations with Russia from its website, citing Politico.
The party had previously proposed halting several cooperation projects with Germany and exiting NATO’s integrated military command. However, these plans, along with the proposals for deeper cooperation with Russia, have disappeared from the official National Rally website.
Journalists link this to the party's desire to achieve significant success in the upcoming French parliamentary elections. It is noted that the removed proposals appeared during the presidential campaign of one of the party leaders, Marine Le Pen, in 2022.
“In the manifesto, the National Rally had advocated distance from Washington while trying to engage with Moscow,” writes Politico.
At that time, Le Pen suggested seeking an alliance with Russia on certain issues, such as European security or the fight against terrorism.
Far-right party's stance on Ukraine
In recent months, the National Rally has softened some of its most controversial positions.
In March, National Assembly deputies abstained from voting on military aid to Ukraine, while deputies from the left-wing party France Unbowed voted against it.
That same month, rising star and National Rally president Jordan Bardella stated that France should wait until the end of the war in Ukraine before leaving NATO’s unified military command. Bardella will become Prime Minister if the National Rally wins the parliamentary elections.
In its program for the 2024 European elections, the party declared that Russia had violated international law and provoked a revision of the international order.
Elections in France
Recently, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the dissolution of the National Assembly, the lower house of the French parliament.
This decision followed his party’s devastating defeat in the European Parliament elections. Meanwhile, the National Rally achieved more significant results during the vote.
