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France's Marine Le Pen wants her far-right party to join forces with Ukip and destroy 'European Soviet Union'

But Ukip leader Nigel Farage says the suggestion of an alliance was a non-starter

Ian Johnston
Thursday 09 January 2014 19:33 EST
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Marine Le Pen believes her party and Ukip share a common set of values
Marine Le Pen believes her party and Ukip share a common set of values (Thomas Samson/AFP/Getty Images)

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The leader of the France's Front National believes the far-right party and Ukip share a common set of values and should join forces to bring down the “European Soviet Union”.

Marine Le Pen said she expected the “European system… to explode” and suggested Ukip might decide to form a partnership with the Front National and other far-right parties in the future to help make this happen.

However Ukip's leader Nigel Farage, who insists his party is “strictly non-racist” and “libertarian”, dismissed the idea.

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Ms Le Pen said Ukip had not formed an alliance because of “electoral considerations”.

“They say they're not in agreement with us. My foot,” she said.

“OK, we don't have the same economic policies [but] they share our point of view on the European Union and immigration: everyone must control his borders, European technocrats must disappear, the European Soviet Union must collapse, everyone must have their own currency, their economic policy and decide in their own home.

"There are political considerations behind this. Ukip currently presides its own group [in the European Parliament] and will try to rebuild that group (after the EU elections in May).

“If they don't manage to create a group again, they will surely not find it a bad idea to join with us.”

She said the Berlin Wall had fallen and she wanted to “bring the Brussels wall down” as well.

“I expect one thing only from the European system and that's for it to explode,” she said. “We have to wait for everything to fall flat on its face, contribute to that if possible, to bring about the project of a Europe of free nations.”

Mr Farage said the suggestion of a Ukip-Front National alliance was a non-starter.

“We keep getting this every fortnight or so don't we? Look, we've made it clear that we don't intend to do a political deal at any point with French National Front,” he said.

He has said previously: “I am sure that a new Eurosceptic group of parties comprising Marine Le Pen and Geert Wilders and others will happen, but Ukip will not be part of it. As a strictly non-racist and libertarian party, Ukip will be ploughing our own furrow in Europe with parties with which we are happy to do business and make a stand against the EU's political union.”

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