Francois Fillon
Media reports that the presidential candidate of France françois Fillon allegedly received a bribe for arranging meetings with Russian leader Vladimir Putin with representatives of business, similar to another fake, said press Secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov. His words on Wednesday, March 22nd, the correspondent “Tapes.ru”.
“All the President’s meetings are organized by the Protocol of the President, there is eliminated the role of intermediaries”, — said the official representative of the Kremlin.
Peskov also said that Putin during the St. Petersburg international economic forum (SPIEF) in 2015, actually met with CEO of Total Patrick Pouyanne. “Total long and effectively present in the Russian Federation. And definitely do not need any intermediaries to arrange a meeting with the President, therefore, absurd to say that someone had organized”, — said Peskov.
In addition, the relationship of Vladimir Putin with the deceased head of Total Christophe de Margerie was not just a partner, but also friendly, said Peskov. He recalled that the Frenchman was posthumously awarded the medal of Honor.
“In Moscow it was treated with great respect. And you know that after the tragic death of de Margerie (died in the night of October 21, 2014 in a plane crash in Moscow’s Vnukovo airport — approx. “Of the tape.ru”) continued business relationship with his successor,” — said the representative of the Kremlin.
Commenting on reports of meetings with the Lebanese businessman-billionaire Fouad Makhzoumi, Peskov said that on the sidelines of the forum the Russian leader communicates and photographed with a huge number of businessmen. “It does not require any mediation, and all this is on his feet and on the run”, he added.
Putin will also take part in the upcoming St. Petersburg economic forum in June 2017. “The purpose of his presence — communication with the largest possible number of entrepreneurs and foreign investors,” concluded Sands.
Earlier in the French satirical weekly Canard Enchaine published an article alleging that former French Prime Minister Fillon has received 50 thousand dollars from Fuad Makhzumi for organizing the meeting with the Russian President on the sidelines of SPIEF 2015. The publication also claims that the company visit organized a meeting with Putin and Total CEO Patrick Pouyanne.
At the end of January it’s French edition posted the material in which it was alleged that for several years the wife of the fictitious Penelope Fillon was listed as an assistant to her husband, at a time when he was a member of the national Assembly, for which he received remuneration in the amount of 500 thousand euros. Then the financial news began investigating the case about the fictitious employment of the spouse of the candidate in presidents of the country.