Alexei Mukhin, director general of Russian center of political information, linked discussion of the bill criminalizing Armenian Genocide denial with French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s election campaign.

“Now that Sarkozy reached the goals set, he is no longer concerned over the future of the draft law,” the expert stated.

On December 22, 2011, French National Assembly passed a bill criminalizing public denial of the Armenian Genocide. If passed and signed into law by the Senate, the bill would impose a 45,000 euro fine and a year in prison for anyone in France who denies this crime against humanity committed by the Ottoman Empire.