Francois Fillon Backs Lifting Anti-Russia Sanctions to Shore Up Farming

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Fillon's strategy on how to revive France's struggling agricultural sector seeks to "lift the sanctions against Russia that impoverish French and European farmers," according to his campaign website.

The center-right candidate will try to rally farmers' support this week when he makes a campaign stop at the International Agricultural Show in Paris, scheduled between February 25 and March 5.

The financial prosecutors opened an inquiry into Fillon's wife case on January 25 after the satirical weekly Le Canard Enchaine reported that she had been paid up to $8,500 per month during her time as her husband’s assistant between 1998 and 2012 and received a $5,400 gross monthly salary at the magazine, owned by Fillon's friend. Le Canard Enchaine also claimed that the children of the couple, who worked as his assistants between 2005 and 2007 at the upper house of the French parliament, had earned about $90,700, though it was unclear whether Fillon's children had really exercised their job responsibilities.

The center-right candidate has repeatedly denied all accusations and pledged to continue fighting. Though his popularity significantly dropped due to the scandal, Fillon said on Tuesday that he excluded candidacy withdrawal from the presidential race.

A fresh Opinionway poll shows far-right National Front (FN) party leader Marine Le Pen is still likely to win the first round of the presidential election in April but lose the May runoff to either Fillon or independent Emmanuel Macron, who are projected to win respectively 58 and 61 percent of votes in the second round if they run against Le Pen.