French presidential hopeful Marine Le Pen said she broadly supports sanctions against Russia, except when it comes to oil and gas supplies.

Iran PressEurope: The far-right politician will battle Emmanuel Macron for the presidency in a run-off election after obtaining her highest result ever in the first round.

But she has faced criticism for allegedly being too close to Russia amid the war in Ukraine.

"I am perfectly in favour of all the other sanctions," Ms Le Pen said.

In the interview with France Inter Radio, she said: "I do not want French people to suffer the consequences of sanctions" on oil and gas.

France, like many other European countries, imports much of its natural gas through pipelines from Russia, using it for residential and commercial energy.

Le Pen who previously appeared to support Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula, also said that she did not intend to travel to Kiev, emphasizing that the 2014 annexation of Crimea to Russia was not illegal.

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