Le Pen says she would meet Zelenskyy in Brussels; Ukraine aid lasts six months if elected

An offer on the sidelines in Paris

Marine Le Pen said on Friday, 13 November, that she would be prepared to hold talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Brussels. Speaking on the sidelines of the Made in France trade fair in Paris, she called a meeting in the Belgian capital justified, arguing that the financing of Ukraine is now a problem shaking Europe. The offer comes from the Rassemblement National candidate, who is the front-runner in polls ahead of the presidential election in May 2027. Asked whether she would meet Zelenskyy privately during her campaign, she gave a conditional yes. Her remarks come after repeated pledges to end French financial aid to Ukraine if she wins.

“Yes, if I can meet him in Brussels, I will tell the Ukrainian ambassador.”

Ambassador meeting and Kyiv invitation

Le Pen is due to meet Ukraine's ambassador to France, Vadym Omelchenko, behind closed doors on Monday, 16 November, and she plans to put the Brussels proposal to him then. Her rivals regularly accuse her of leniency toward Moscow, a charge she has faced throughout her campaign. Zelenskyy has answered with an invitation of his own, asking her to visit Kyiv. In an interview with the French weekly L'Express, he said she would change her mind if she met Ukrainians.

Aid, budget and the EU loan

Le Pen has said France can no longer afford to keep financing Ukraine's war effort, and she estimates French aid at 6 billion euros a year, a figure Zelenskyy has challenged. Zelenskyy has described the military partnership with Paris as a win-win relationship. Le Pen has said she would keep aid going for six months if elected and stop it after that, pointing to countries that have opposed additional financing for Kyiv. She also said the EU had already begun disbursing 90 billion euros to support Kyiv.

EU loan to Ukraine, 2026-202790

Kyiv's estimated budget gap for next year70

EU commitment toward the gap45

EU loan to Ukraine, 2026-2027

90 EUR billion

Kyiv's estimated budget gap for next year

70 EUR billion

EU commitment toward the gap

45 EUR billion

Data from the article text

Le Pen also singled out Friedrich Merz's threats to cut EU funds for countries that refuse to back Ukraine financially.

“The German chancellor is starting to threaten people, it's starting to be an issue in Europe and it would be interesting to discuss this.”

Budget gap and the Donbas debate

Kyiv said in October that the 90 billion euro loan would not cover its needs and put the budget gap for next year at about 70 billion euros. The EU has committed to cover part of that deficit, namely 45 billion euros, though it has yet to define how it will do so. Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic were exempted from contributing to the loan. On Tuesday, 10 November, the Slovak and Czech prime ministers criticised Merz's plan to make talks on the next EU budget conditional on all 27 member states taking part in financing Ukraine. In November, far-left leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon also caused controversy by proposing a post-war referendum on the future of the Donbas, to be held in the area, which is mostly under Russian occupation.

The dated steps run from Kyiv's October warning to the ambassador meeting scheduled for Monday, 16 November.