SIMFEROPOL (Sputnik) — On Tuesday, Le Pen told the Russian Izvestia newspaper that she would recognize Crimea as a part of Russia and advocate for the lifting of anti-Moscow sanctions in case she wins the French presidential election. The two rounds of France’s 2017 presidential elections will be held on April 23 and May 7.
The comments caused outrage in Ukraine and were met with enthusiasm in Crimea.
"It is a wise and far-sighted stance fitting a leading politician of a great country," Aksenov wrote on his Facebook, adding that unlike many other EU politicians, Le Pen prioritizes the interests of her own country, has an objective view of reality and knows the history of Russia and Crimea.
Crimea rejoined Russia in March 2014 following a referendum which found that over 97 percent of its population voted for the reunification with Russia.
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