FRANCE’S far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen requested a multi-million pounds loan from Russia to be wired to an account in her own name, leaked documents reveal.

The revelations come after the 48-year-old firebrand met President Vladimir Putin in Moscow last week.

They also follow warnings from the American Senate that Russia is actively interfering in the French election to try and get its favoured candidate into power.

5 Marine Le Pen has admitted borrowing the cash - but claims the documents are misunderstood Credit: EPA

Mediapart, the Paris-based investigative news outlet, today publishes two previously confidential documents produced by Ms Le Pen’s party, the National Front (FN).

They state that Ms Le Pen and party chiefs agreed on June 15th last year to borrow the equivalent of £2.6million from Russia’s Strategy Bank, at a rate of 6 percent per year.

An FN memo says the ‘purpose of the borrowed money’ was ‘financing the electoral campaign’.

5 The US has warned that Russia is interfering in the French poll Credit: Getty Images

Another document clearly states that the funds were to be used for election expenses, and were to be

wired to a bank account opened in the name of Marine Le Pen.

In the face of this evidence, the FN today admitted that the documents were true, but accused Mediapart of ‘dishonesty and stupidity’ in the way they had interpreted them.

Wallerand de Saint-Just, the FN lawyer who only last week had insisted that the party was not seeking money from Russia, said the loan was ‘just a project, which was not followed up.’

He said he would be filing a legal complaint for ‘violation of secrecy’ against Mediapart, saying that there were ‘some police officers and magistrates who provide these unscrupulous people with documents from judicial searches and probably for remuneration.’

5 Marine Le Pen met with Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin Credit: EPA

Last year Ms Le Pen admitted receiving two loans totalling £9.5 million in 2014 from the First-Czech Russian Bank, which has now been dissolved.

Ms Le Pen and other party members are also facing prison over a wide scale fraud enquiry related to fake jobs at the European Parliament.

5 Marine Le Pen is also receiving £5 million from her father, Jean Marie Le Pen, despite reports of a rift between the two Credit: AP:Associated Press

All deny any wrong doing, and are threatening to sue Le Monde newspaper which has published documents appearing to incriminate Ms Le Pen in relation to the lucrative EU scam.

Ms Le Pen, who is tipped to win through to the second round of voting in May, has continually expressed her support and admiration for Mr Putin.

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Both politicians are fierce hard-Right nationalists, who are skeptical about the continuation of the European Union.

French banks refuse to lend to Ms Le Pen, because of FN policies that are considered to be xenophobic.

She is also receiving some £5 million from her father, the convicted racist and anti-Semite Jean Marie Le Pen, through his Cotelec organisation.

Despite claims of a rift between the two Le Pens, Mr Le Pen remains the honorary president of the FN and an MEP.

5 Former French Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron is the favourite to become president Credit: Getty Images

U.S. intelligence agencies have already accused Moscow of influencing the election of President Donald Trump through hacking and distributing fake news.

U.S. Senator Richard Burr, who has access to some of the most highly classified intelligence, said on Thursday: ‘I think it's safe by everybody's judgement that the Russians are actively involved in the French elections.’

According to the latest polls, the favourite to become French president in May is the independent candidate Emmanuel Macron, with Ms Le Pen as runner-up.