Ahead of France’s presidential election planned for April 18, 2027, Russia’s embassy in Paris rejected allegations that Moscow had interfered in the country’s internal affairs. The embassy said Russia does not interfere in the internal affairs of sovereign states.
The embassy in Paris argued that Western countries and France had intensified unfounded allegations against Russia. It said the rhetoric about the “Russian threat” was being used to justify anti-Moscow policies and the countries’ arms buildup. The embassy said these policies were doomed to fail.
Moscow responds to Paris’s defense budget
Russia’s embassy in Paris also criticized the French government’s increasing defense spending. It argued that diverting budget resources to military spending negatively affected socially important sectors, widened the budget deficit and increased the public debt that future generations would have to repay.
The embassy also claimed that political leaders who blame Moscow were trying to shift responsibility for problems under their own governments onto Russia. It alleged that these governments had resulted in worsening economic conditions, declining industrial output, growing social inequalities and reduced purchasing power.
French politicians accuse Russia
Russia’s statement came as French officials and politicians had accused Moscow in recent months of interfering in elections. VIGINUM, France’s agency for monitoring foreign digital interference, attributed alleged disinformation operations carried out this summer to two networks called Matryoshka and Storm-1516, which French authorities describe as pro-Russian.
The alleged operations targeted Renaissance Party leader and presidential candidate Gabriel Attal, Horizons Party leader Édouard Philippe and European Parliament member Raphaël Glucksmann.
Attal accused Moscow of trying to steal the 2027 presidential election from the French people. The former prime minister said Russia was trying to prevent voters from making informed decisions and added that the latest interference allegation did not surprise him.
French President Emmanuel Macron also claimed in February that Russia had purchased millions of fake accounts in bulk during election periods.
France’s then minister delegate for European affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, said in June 2024 that the threat of foreign interference from Russia was real ahead of the European Parliament elections. Barrot argued that they were facing propaganda from the Putin administration and its supporters. He said France was the target of coordinated efforts to influence public debate and the European election campaign.
France’s election schedule
The first round of France’s presidential election is planned for April 18, 2027. If no candidate secures a majority in the first round, the second round is expected to take place on May 2.
