EDITORIAL. The RN faced with the return of accusations of proximity to Russia

An investigation by the American daily “Washington Post”, published last weekend, has caused a lot of reaction from the political class in recent days.

The Moscow plaster is obviously formidable as Marine Le Pen’s party is having difficulty getting rid of it. The Washington Post investigation [article en anglais] describes once again how, including indirectly, the National Rally takes up arguments promoted by Moscow: “a costly war for the French”, “unnecessary sanctions against Russia” or a call to “work for peace” without mentioning any conditions for Russia… The opportunity was too good: “bonds of vassalage”, “complicity”, “drive belt” very quickly denounced Macronist elected officials in particular.

Immediate political attacks because there is a scent of European elections. They actually take place in six months and Emmanuel Macron himself sounded the charge on Sunday evening in his wishes. He does not cite the RN, but the target is transparent, when he mentions a decisive choice on June 9, between “stop Russia and support the Ukrainians or give in to the authoritarian powers in Ukraine”. The head of state had already accused Marine Le Pen of having Vladimir Putin as a “banker” during the debate on the second round of the presidential election.

While Europe is struggling to mobilize new funds for Ukraine, and for the first time, European elections will take place with a war on the continent, the relationship with Russia will certainly be a theme and an angle of discussion. attack on Jordan Bardella’s list.

Why can’t the RN get rid of this “band-aid”?

Because the RN is ambiguous. Certainly, he has undertaken to repay his Russian loan but for the rest, he practices sculling. Last February, Jordan Bardella recognized “a collective naivety with regard to Vladimir Putin’s intentions” and called for a withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine. In the process, Marine Le Pen hastened to publish a letter asking “a conference on peace” to obtain a “peaceful and rapid exit from the conflict”, major difference in approach. In the European Parliament, RN MEPs have only voted for a handful of resolutions in support of Ukraine, and very recently, in her wishes of December 31, Marine Le Pen mentions Emmanuel Macron, Israel, inflation but not a single word on the conflict in Ukraine. If it is an oversight, it is at least clumsy.

So of course, even if the RN struggles to make people forget this issue, the effect will undoubtedly be zero on voters convinced by Marine Le Pen but it could hinder the RN’s seduction operation towards undecided people, the middle classes, retirees . To refer Marine Le Pen’s party to its ambivalence towards a regime that has become dictatorial and bellicose is to send it back to its own demonization, it is to leave doubt hovering, and in politics, doubt is a poison.