Le Pen says France can no longer finance Ukraine

Marine Le Pen, Rassemblement National’s candidate for France’s 2027 presidential election, said Wednesday that France “can no longer finance Ukraine,” according to a France 24 report published Oct. 15.

The comment matters because France is the euro zone’s second-biggest economy, and France 24 said current polls predict Le Pen winning the 2027 vote, giving her budget position policy significance.

“We can no longer finance Ukraine,” Le Pen told reporters in Brussels, according to the report.

“France today is in an extremely perilous situation,” she said, citing the country’s high deficit and weak economic growth, France 24 reported. The report did not provide figures for the deficit, growth or French financial support to Ukraine.

Le Pen’s statement puts the cost of support for Kyiv into France’s presidential debate more than a year before the 2027 election. The supplied material included no response from the French government, Ukrainian officials or other French candidates.

The next political marker in the report is France’s 2027 presidential vote, where France 24 said current polling shows Le Pen on course to win.