President of the French far-right party and presidential candidate for the 2017 French Presidential elections Marine Le Pen | Martin Bureau/AFP via Getty Images Marine Le Pen attacks US election hacking ‘conspiracy theories’ National Front leader says US has carried out ‘illegal’ eavesdropping on its allies.

PARIS — French far-right leader Marine Le Pen dismissed reports of Russian interference in the U.S. presidential election as "conspiracy theories" Friday and lashed out at the United States for failing to show "respect" toward allies.

Her comments came shortly after Reuters reported, citing U.S. intelligence officials, that the CIA had identified Russian officials who fed information hacked from the Democratic Party to WikiLeaks under orders from President Vladimir Putin.

"I think we are in a moment when conspiracy theories seem to be very popular," Le Pen, head of the National Front, said to members of the Anglo-American Press Association at her campaign headquarters in Paris. "I am not sure that there is really serious evidence behind these accusations of cyberattacks."

However, she went on to discuss "those who did carry out these cyberattacks," arguing that they had not brought about Donald Trump's election as U.S. president because American voters were instead responding to Hillary Clinton's "deep thoughts."

"It's derisory, and honestly on this subject I find that Mr. Trump is the most reasonable" — Marine Le Pen

Le Pen did not respond specifically to testimony or findings on the hacking. U.S. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper testified to the Senate Armed Services Committee on Russian hacking Thursday. Later on Friday, President-elect Trump is due to be briefed by U.S. intelligence officials on their latest findings.

"None of this has any meaning," said Le Pen. "It's derisory, and honestly on this subject I find that Mr. Trump is the most reasonable."

The National Front chief, who is predicted to reach the final round of France's presidential election, went on to accuse the United States of having carried out "illegal" eavesdropping on its allies, which she said was "not respectable" or "dignified."

Unlike Germany, France's government has not voiced concerns about hacking or cyberattacks during the upcoming presidential election. However, French Socialist MP Sebastien Pietrasanta told POLITICO this week that such concerns were very strong "at all levels" of government, and that parties and campaign structures remain highly vulnerable to hacking.

Financing trouble

Asked about the funding of her cash-strapped party, Le Pen said she was still seeking money from foreign banks to finance her parliamentary election campaign, which will begin directly after the presidential election.

A €6 million loan obtained from Cotelec, a financing organization owned by her father, Jean-Marie, would be enough to underwrite her presidential campaign "with serenity," she said. Jean-Marie Le Pen was excluded from the National Front in 2015 for racist and anti-Semitic comments.

Even so, the National Front still needs an estimated €10 million in additional cash to underwrite its parliamentary election campaign. Le Pen said she would accept loans from any bank, while saying it was a "disgrace" that French banks did not loan to her party.

Just as the National Front obtained its welcome rescue loan from Jean-Marie Le Pen, it faced a call from a Russian agency to reimburse €9 million it borrowed from a Russian-backed bank in 2014.

Party treasurer Wallerand de Saint-Just told Le Monde this week that he had received no notification of the reimbursement request. The loan, he added, was meant to be reimbursed in full by September 2019.

In the meantime, Saint-Just added, the National Front was paying monthly interest of 6 percent on the loan.