Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella warn Russia against interference in French politics

Rejection of Russian political interference

Marine Le Pen and Rassemblement National party leader Jordan Bardella published a joint statement hardening their position toward the Russian government. The 58-year-old French politician emphasized that French foreign policy decisions will be made strictly in Paris rather than in Moscow. Le Pen warned that outside actors will not be permitted to dictate domestic affairs through coercion or covert operations.

“We will never tolerate that a foreign power, in this case Russia, can hope to dictate our country's policy directly or indirectly through intimidation, threat, destabilisation or psychological pressure.”

The joint letter stated that any attempt by a foreign state to direct French governmental choices violates national sovereignty. Both political figures affirmed that while strategic and diplomatic orientations remain open to democratic debate among French citizens, pressure applied from abroad is fundamentally illegitimate.

Retaliation against asset seizures and covert actions

The statement follows actions by authorities in Moscow placing the Russian business operations of several European companies under forced administration. Among the affected entities is the French retail and supermarket chain Auchan, which maintained commercial networks across Russia. The party leadership framed the seizure of these commercial operations as an unacceptable attempt at economic intimidation.

“No provocation, covert operation or destabilisation action can lead France to make it easier for Russia to achieve its war aims in Ukraine.”

In addition to the forced administration of foreign businesses, Le Pen and Bardella cited an escalation over recent weeks in hostile acts committed throughout European territory. The joint document stated that covert operations carried out by agents on behalf of Russia have been increasing, creating direct security risks for European nations.

Electoral positioning ahead of spring presidential vote

The hardening of the party's foreign policy stance coincides with preparations for the French presidential election scheduled for next spring. Marine Le Pen is campaigning to become French head of state and currently holds a clear lead over rival contenders in published opinion surveys. These polling numbers position her as a leading candidate to qualify for the decisive second-round runoff.

The joint communication directly addresses the political debate over French defense policy and international assistance during the war in Ukraine. Le Pen and Bardella wrote that French lawmakers and voters have an entirely legitimate right to evaluate the exact volume of aid provided to Kyiv, as well as the specific conditions attached to that support. However, they maintained that French state decisions cannot be dictated by external pressure or intelligence actions originating from Moscow.

Evolution from previous party financing scrutiny

The direct criticism of Moscow addresses years of domestic and European scrutiny regarding Le Pen's historical relationship with Russian institutions. In previous presidential and parliamentary campaigns, political opponents repeatedly faulted the National Rally leader for failing to establish sufficient public distance from the Kremlin. A central point of that criticism focused on a campaign loan that Le Pen secured from a Czech-Russian bank in 2014 to finance party operations.

By publishing an explicit denunciation of Russian asset seizures and covert intelligence operations, Le Pen and Bardella are establishing clear distance from Moscow. The joint declaration formalizes the party leadership's foreign policy posture as candidates enter the campaign for the upcoming spring ballot.