Turns out, most readers actually support the lawmakers' decision and think that their MPs have made a wise diplomatic decision, something that Francois Hollande and Laurent Fabius have failed to do.
"These lawmakers are doing what Fabius [French Foreign Minister] doesn't know how to do — maintain relationships with people who don't necessarily share the same opinion as you. This is called diplomacy, not a Siesta during official meetings," user Danielle Mondoloni criticized the French government in the comment section of a story published by Le Figaro.
Paris condemned the lawmakers' decision, but Nicolas Dhuicq, one of the French MPs, said the government should keep its mouth shut, as it doesn't have the authority to tell MPs what to say and where to go. Readers liked what Dhuicq has said.
"France is not [yet] the Soviet Union! The socialist party isn't the only party in France and MPs from other political parties shouldn't ask permission from Monsieur Fabius. They are only responsible before the people and not the governing party," user Noir de Noir commented about the situation in Le Figaro.
Most people agreed that France must end its quarrel with Russia and re-establish friendly relations that used to be between the two countries in the past.
"It's very important to talk to Russians and put an end to the feud, which benefits nobody — neither Russians nor Europeans," user Factuel said in Le Monde.
"During the delegates' visit to Russia, the French government should issue an official letter demanding to stop the annexation of Crimea and occupation of Eastern Ukraine," user Franck Boiron shared his thoughts in Le Monde.
However, another user, Pierrot Le Fou, was quick to correct his thoughts:
"That's not going to happen, because there is neither annexation nor occupation. There is the hysterical reaction of Americans and Europeans on the historical process in Ukraine, which both the EU and the United States largely helped to start to begin with… Russians know what they're doing, unlike us, unfortunately."
The French lawmakers said they had decided to make the trip to Crimea to get a sense of what was really going on in the Black Sea peninsula. Both the French and Ukrainian governments have condemned the decision, considering it a breach of international law.
