Medvedev called Le Pen's sentence an attempt to eliminate a competitor.

On March 31, Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council, linked the verdict of Marine Le Pen, leader of the French National Unification Party, to the desire of the French authorities to exclude her from the political struggle.

"The main point of this quickly concocted decision is to eliminate the leader of one of France's largest parties ahead of the 2027 presidential election," Medvedev said.

He also compared the situation with the recent elections in Romania, where, according to him, Calin Georgescu was suspended from participation under "no less far-fetched pretext."

According to the politician, such actions discredit the French political system.

Medvedev also recalled the events of 1814, when the Russian army entered Paris, noting that then Russia "brought democracy to France."

Democracy in agony: Marine Le Pen was sentenced to four years in prison.

She will not go to prison, but she will not be able to participate in the elections in 2027.

On March 31, a court in Paris found Marine Le Pen, the leader of the right—wing National Unification party in the French parliament, guilty of embezzlement of European Parliament funds in the case of creating fictitious jobs, sentencing her to four years in prison, two of which are suspended, and the remaining two years are house arrest with wearing an electronic bracelet.

On the same day, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that European countries do not shy away from going beyond democracy during the political process.