The most prominent Jewish institutions in France called for voting for outgoing President Emmanuel Macron in the second round of the presidential elections scheduled for April 24, while Macron's rival, far-right candidate Marine Le Pen, called for a "strategic rapprochement" between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) ) and Russia, once the war in Ukraine ended.
The Representative Council of Jewish Institutions said - in a statement published today, Wednesday - that it urges the French to block Le Pen's path and vote for Macron, to ensure "the victory of France, which brings us together through the ballot box."
The council added that it opposes Marine Le Pen's party, because "its history and positions contradict the republican values held by the Jews of France."
The head of the Central Jewish Religious Congregation, Elie Corcia, and the Chief Rabbi of France, Haim Corsia, called for overcoming political divisions and voting for Emmanuel Macron, "in order to ensure that the main principles of the Republic are preserved as human values advocated by Judaism."
Le Pen intends - if she assumes the French presidency - to ban the slaughter of animals without shock, that is, to ban the method of slaughter used according to the laws of Jews and Muslims.
Macron topped the results of the first round of the presidential poll - which was held last Sunday - with 27.8% of the vote, followed by Le Pen with 23.1%, to repeat the scenario of the 2017 presidential elections, in which Macron defeated his opponent, the far-right candidate.
Foreign Policy
The two candidates continue their campaigns to mobilize the largest number of voters for their benefit, and Le Pen said - in a press conference - about her vision for France's foreign policy that she wants "a strategic rapprochement between NATO and Russia once the Russian-Ukrainian war ends and is settled under a peace treaty."
The right-wing candidate added that this rapprochement is in the interest of France, Europe and the United States, and Le Pen stressed that she does not want to "subjugate to Moscow", nor to "subordination to the administration of US President Joe Biden", especially in the Asia-Pacific region.
The presidential candidate also said that she would not withdraw from the Paris agreement to tackle climate change if she won the presidential elections, adding that the climate crisis was "not a priority" in her foreign policy.
Macron and Sarkozy
On the other hand, Macron denied - on Wednesday - any broader political agreement with former President Nicolas Sarkozy regarding his support for Macron in the second round of the presidential elections.
Macron during an election tour in northeastern France (Anatolia)
French media have speculated that Macron, who needs a new majority after the legislative elections later this year after the elections, will win Sarkozy's support after he was offered - in return - for political influence.
Yesterday, Sarkozy announced his support for Macron, saying in a post on the communication sites, "I think he has the necessary experience, because we are facing a major and more complex international crisis than ever before."
Regarding the Russian war in Ukraine, Macron did not use the phrase "genocide" used by his American counterpart Joe Biden to describe what Russian forces are committing in Ukraine, questioning the usefulness of "verbal escalation" to end the war.
In response to a question on France 2 channel about Biden's statements on Tuesday, Macron replied that he wanted to "be careful in the use of terminology," adding, "I say that Russia launched a violent unilateral war, and that it has now been proven that the Russian army committed war crimes, and we must Currently finding the responsible."