Стр. 34 - V

Электронное приложение к журналу «Международная жизнь»
Author : François Asselineau
President of the Union Populaire Républicaine (France)
I have great respect for M. Lavrov, whom I consider to be a
major Russian statesman and one of the best foreign ministers
in the world. It is also very important for me that the Russian
foreign minister always cites norms of international law. For my
part, since I created my own political movement, I have always
prioritized the need to follow these norms. As far as I am con-
cerned, the very concept of law is what separates barbarism
from civilization.
As you probably know, my presidential program includes
[France's] withdrawal from the European Union and NATO.
To put it bluntly, Washington has used these organizations to
put Paris into a dependent position. My public presentations usually take place against the back-
drop of three flags: French, UN and "Francophonic."
Now regarding the relations between France and Russia. De Gaulle unexpectedly told Peyrefitte
this: Every time France had good relations with Russia, France was on a roll. However, every
time our relations with Russia soured, we had a bad period in our history.
It should be noted that these remarks were made half a century ago but they are still relevant.
I am a loyal adherent of the ideas that he put forward at that time and I believe that France today
is suffering because it has lost itself. After all, France literally means a "country of free people."
However, today, it has turned into a country that is Washington's satellite as a result of European
agreements.
I believe in balance, but today's world is unbalanced. I therefore believe that France should have
good relations with Russia. I am not saying this just to please you. I advocate good-neighborly
relations with strong countries, as well as an alliance with China. By the way, here, too, General
de Gaulle was the first to acknowledge the importance of China.
In reality, there are two sides in Ukraine - pro-Western and pro-Russian. I believe that the Ukrain-
ian people themselves should decide whether to establish a certain federal structure or to consider
the possibility of dividing the country. I do not know what they will decide but France should
stop fueling the fire - importantly, both in Ukraine and in Syria.
For many years, the French people have been told that the European Union is absolutely indis-
pensable, because it means peace; that the euro zone is a sign of prosperity and new jobs, and
that if we abandon the euro, the Apocalypse will begin. However, I am not at all sure that these
statements are in sync with the worldview of the French people themselves. Nevertheless, the
fundamental principle of conducting an election campaign in a truly democratic society is to ex-
plain to the public what is going on. It is simply that people are not informed well enough.
It seems to me that the French political class has not measured up to the occasion. For many
"People Simply Want to Vote for an Honest Person"