This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

The daughter of Vladimir Putin’s spokesman is working in the European parliament as a trainee for a French nationalist politician allied to Nigel Farage.

Aymeric Chauprade, who supported Russia’s annexation of Crimea, confirmed that his trainee was the daughter of Dmitry Peskov, Vladimir Putin’s chief spokesman.

“I confirm she is the daughter of Mr Peskov, but for me she is only a student in France and a good trainee,” Chauprade wrote in an statement to the Guardian.

“[She] is a trainee studying law and international relations in France. The European parliament has validated twice the contract and all procedures have been respected.”

Hitting out against “conspiratorial Russophobia”, Chauprade added: “I make the difference between a person and his family. These are our western values.”

The French MEP is vice-chair of the Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy group, led by Farage. Chauprade used to advise Marine Le Pen on foreign policy, but quit her far-right Front National in 2015 in a dispute over strategy.

He is a member of the European parliament’s foreign affairs committee and a subcommittee on security and defence, raising alarm about Kremlin access to secret documents.

Sandra Kalniete, a Latvian centre-right MEP, told Radio Free Europe, which first reported the story, that there had been “a breach of general security rules”.

But sources at the European parliament insisted Chauprade had no access to confidential documents that typically include reports from EU foreign embassies to Brussels or negotiating objectives for EU trade deals.

“Assistants and trainees to MEPs do not have access to confidential documents,” a source said. “In fact, Mr Chauprade himself has never had access to confidential documents.”

A typical trainee would have free access to committee rooms and the plenary debating chamber, to attend events that are usually live-streamed. Peskov’s daughter could also attend some private meetings, such as the monthly gathering of the EFDD group, which is usually chaired by Farage.

MEPs can choose to hire interns from non-EU countries as long as the trainee meets residence requirements.

Chauprade said: “The European parliament claims it is against racism but all your hear from its Europhile members is anti-Americanism jingoism and conspiratorial Russophobia.”

The French MEP, who once described Russia as “the hope of the world against new totalitarianism”, was a prominent supporter of Putin’s annexation of Crimea. He was part of a team of election monitors working for a pro-Kremlin organisation that declared the disputed referendum in 2014 free and fair.