She and far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon both want Paris to leave the military alliance, raising alarm bells at NATO headquarters about France’s future defense policy.
The National Rally has long advocated withdrawing from NATO’s integrated command, but Le Pen’s comments indicate a slight shift in her position. Back in May, she said France would pull out during her first term, without referring to the war in Ukraine, while the party’s president Jordan Bardella wanted to wait for a peace agreement between Kyiv and Moscow.
Le Pen and Bardella are campaigning as a ticket that would see the 31-year-old become prime minister.
Le Pen also said that France should not enter into a war with Russia, a nuclear-armed power, and rejected the notion that it is currently in a conflict with Moscow despite the Kremlin’s hybrid attacks against European nations.
By publishing a statement condemning Russia last week, Le Pen and Bardella sought to fend off attacks from center-right and center-left opponents who have frequently portrayed the party as an ally to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
However, Le Pen repeated her pledge Thursday to stop financial help to Ukraine if she wins next year’s presidential election.