During the electoral campaign in France, both major candidates said so little about relations with Russia that Russian foreign policy experts were left with very little to obsess over. Instead, the media and expert community concentrated on details of the campaign and its aftermath, revealing the mostly stereotypical views Russians have about France.

Kommersant daily noted Nicolas Sarkozy's admirations for all things American and hinted that this could have a negative impact on France's relations with Russia, since France would shed some of its Gaullist heritage in foreign policy. The Gaullist attitude to foreign policy was based on the so called non-bloc approach, which under De Gaulle revealed itself in skepticism towards NATO and under Jacques Chirac, and in France's opposition to the invasion of Iraq. Kommersant quoted Sarkozy as saying "If you ask me whom France should have better relations with ? the U.S. or Russia, which we know very well by its war in Chechnya - I will tell you: "With the US."

However, seasoned politicians, unwilling to create more enemies at a time when Russia 's relationship with the EU ? particuularly its newer members ? leaves much to be desired, preferred to strike a lesss pessimistic note.

"Sarkozy's victory gives us reason to hope that relations between Russia and France will stay as stable as they are now. And I hope that they will even develop," said State Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov.

"Nicolas Sarkozy is to a certain extent a successor of [outgoing president] Jacques Chirac and hence one should not expect any special change in our bilateral relations," said Sergei Mironov, the chairman of the Federation Council.

It was obvious that a lot of politicians from the pro-government United Russia party sympathized with Sarkozy because of his pronounced conservatism and his tougher stance on immigration issues, which have also become a subject of debate in Russia. During the 2005 riots in France, the Russian mass media put so much stress on the fact that many of them were immigrants that some French media accused their Russian colleagues of racism. Sarkozy, with his promise to reign in the car-burning "riff-raff" in a way played up to Russian complexes.

"When we Russians want to settle in France or even to travel there for a day we have to stand in long lines and produce all kinds of papers," said a Duma deputy from the United Russia faction who asked not to be identified. "Meanwhile, the rowdy youths from Africa or the Middle East come there without any problem. They even think they have the right to start riots there. Why do the French distrust us? This is not only unfair, but plain stupid and bad for their country."

Yury Rubinsky, head of the Center for French Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences Institute of Europe noted that Russian politicians and media sometimes tend to simplify Sarkozy and the reasons for his victory in France.

"Everyone just says that he is pro-American and that he is tough on riots," Rubinsky said. "No one explains that the riots erupted because of a new law on employment that particularly affected the young, and that integration problems have their roots in many years of the Socialists' wrong policy on immigration. No one explains that the pro-European trend is the strongest in French politics now, including the traditionally Gaullist parties. Even Gaullists have become pro-EU in the last few decades without our media noticing it."

Sergei Karaganov, the chairman of the influential Council on Foreign and Defense Policy in Moscow, sees nothing unexpected or dangerous in Sarkozy's foreign policy priorities: "There is nothing that would indicate anti-Russian prejudice in Sarkozy," he said. "Under Sarkozy pan-European tendencies can strengthen, including a possible push for adopting a common EU policy on energy, which does not suit Russia's interests. Nonetheless, it is in France's interest to seek an agreement with Russia. As for France's rapprochement with the United States, it is inevitable unless supporters of unilateral policy come to power in the U.S. and adopt an anti-European line."

However, Sarkozy's defeated opponent, Segolene Royal, also has fans in Russia, including those whose sympathy she would have never desired if she had known them. For example, Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov sang Royal's praises in an interview with Vremya Novostei:

"I wished Royal a victory because she is the leader of the French Socialists and France is the most socialist of European countries. Sarkozy tried to resolve the problem of migrants by police methods, now he will have to switch to political methods. This will not be easy because he will have to take account of French public opinion. And this public opinion is very socialistic as there is 50 times more socialism in today's France than there is in Russia."

Olga Potyomkina, head of the Department of Studies of European Integration in the Institute of Europeof the Russian Academy of Sciences, views this vision of France as somewhat too idealistic.

"Many Russians have such a positive image of France that when they learn that France has a history of not just arts, letters and style, but also of juvenile delinquency, it comes as a shock to many," Potyomkina said. "That is why the reports about riots in France were so sensationalist. When I watched news about Russia on French television I did not recognize my country. So, I am not surprised when the French say they don't recognize theirs on our television."