Marine Le Pen, leader of the French far-right party «National Rally», has stated that France can no longer afford to provide €6 billion in financial aid to Ukraine each year. At the same time, she emphasised that she harbours no personal grievances against President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and is prepared to visit Ukraine for a face-to-face discussion. She also confirmed her intention to maintain certain forms of military support for Kyiv, despite her desire to cut funding.
- Marine Le Pen has stated that France can no longer fund Ukraine at the current levels.
- According to the politician’s estimate, supporting Kyiv costs Paris €6 billion a year.
- Le Pen is prepared to visit Ukraine for talks with Zelenskyy.
- Should she be elected president, Le Pen plans to review France’s financial commitments to Ukraine.
Le Pen has said she is willing to visit Zelenskyy
During the ‘Objectif Élysée 2027’ programme on the CNEWS television channel Marine Le Pen commented on the Ukrainian President’s stance regarding the need to continue international support for Kyiv.
The French politician emphasised that her criticism of the financial aid was not linked to her personal views on Vladimir Zelensky.
«I personally have nothing against Mr Zelenskyy.».
Le Pen stated that she was prepared to discuss the differences directly with the Ukrainian president.
«If Mr Zelenskyy would like us to have a chat, I’d be delighted to come to Ukraine.».
At the same time, she emphasised that she considers France’s own financial capacity to be the main problem.
According to Le Pen, the French budget can no longer afford to support Ukraine to the extent that it estimates at approximately 6 billion euros per year. The politician explained that she wishes, first and foremost, to allocate budgetary funds to addressing the domestic economic and social problems of French citizens.
France may continue to provide military aid to Ukraine
Despite her statement on the need to cut funding, Le Pen did not call for a complete halt to all aid to Ukraine. She noted that France could continue to provide certain forms of military support, including the transfer of equipment. In the politician’s view, a distinction must be drawn between direct budgetary payments and military-technical cooperation.
Her proposal therefore primarily involves limiting Paris’s financial commitments, rather than a complete cessation of defence cooperation with Ukraine. However, Le Pen did not specify a particular list of weapons, supply volumes or future budgetary expenditure.
The figure of 6 billion euros is the politician’s own estimate. In her speech, she did not provide a detailed breakdown of this figure, nor did she distinguish between France’s bilateral expenditure and its contribution to the EU’s joint funding mechanisms.
Le Pen wants to review EU funding for Ukraine
Earlier, on 14 October, Marine Le Pen stated in an interview with the Financial Times that she intended to review France’s involvement in providing financial support to Ukraine should she come to power. She criticised the European loan facility for 90 billion euros, stating that France accounts for around 18 billion euros of financial liabilities. According to the politician, this places an excessive burden on France’s public finances.
Le Pen also suggests that France may refuse to support new European aid programmes for Ukraine if they entail additional costs for Paris.
She also spoke out against Ukraine’s accession to the European Union, explaining her position by citing the potential economic consequences for French agriculture and other sectors. The figure of 18 billion euros refers to the estimated value of France’s contribution to the pan-European credit facility, rather than a direct transfer of that amount to Ukraine that has already taken place.
How Zelenskyy responded to Le Pen’s statements
On 15 October, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, commented on previous statements made by a French politician in an interview with the Financial Times. He emphasised that support for Ukraine is not merely financial aid, but also an investment in the security of European states.
According to Mr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian army has gained significant technological expertise, particularly in the use of drones and modern defence systems. The President believes that the French defence industry could benefit from joint arms production and technology exchange with Ukraine.
Zelenskyy also noted that, should Le Pen come to power, it would be important to demonstrate to her the significance of a common European security system. The Ukrainian president made these remarks before Le Pen’s latest statement expressing her willingness to visit Kyiv in person.
Marine Le Pen leads the «National Rally» party, which advocates restricting immigration, strengthening national sovereignty and reviewing France’s relationship with the European Union.
The French presidential election is scheduled for 2027.
According to an Odoxa-Backbone poll published on 14 October 2026, 37% of those polled would support Le Pen in the first round of the presidential election. Another survey, conducted by Ifop between 12 and 14 October, recorded 32% support in one of the candidate line-ups tested. The results vary depending on the polling organisation, the list of candidates and the survey methodology. They reflect voters’ sentiments at the time of the surveys, but do not determine the outcome of a future vote.
