MOSCOW, September 27. /TASS/. French political researcher Emmanuel Marc Andre Leroy obtained Russian citizenship, according to President Vladimir Putin’s decree published Wednesday.

In 2021, the "1717Institute" was established in Paris to study the history of relations between France and Russia, with Leroy becoming its president. He repeatedly provided assessments to operation of the election and other systems in Russia and spoke on the relations between the West and Moscow.

Leroy also spoke against Russophobia, called to fight disinformation on the Ukrainian issue and called a turn towards Russia "the only option for states who want to pick a different path and have no desire to follow Western principles."

Last year, he acted as an observer at the referendums on new regions’ accession to Russia.

Leroy was born in November 1956 in France.