Francois Fillon, frontrunner to become France’s next president, is known for his pro-Russian stance in international politics.

  He wants closer ties with the Kremlin and has called for the European Union to lift its sanctions on Moscow imposed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2014.

   “François Fillon is the most pragmatic candidate in international politics,” said the official Russian news agency, Ria-Novosti.

   “Fillon lived up to the expectations of the French people,” said Russia’s most popular Channel One.

   NTV channel said Fillon, 62, who was prime minister from 2007-2012, “was able to gauge the moods of the silent majority” in rural France, “embodying traditional values” in voters’ eyes.

   “Fillon is closer to the voters than Alain Juppe on several issues: the fight against the Islamic state, gay marriage, and Russia,” Alexei Pushkov, the member of Russian parliament’s upper chamber, wrote on Twitter.