FURIOUS Tory MPs have demanded France strip Vladimir Putin of one of its highest honours.
Mad Vlad was awarded the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour in 2006 for his contribution to friendship between the two nations.
MP Saqib Bhatti said President Emmanuel Macron had “no choice” but to take back the gong.
He added: “Putin has proven that he is nothing more than a war mongerer and I doubt the French people want their highest honour being held by a crazed dictator.”
Fellow Tory Jonathan Gullis added: “Sadly some in the EU seem more concerned with flogging oligarchs their designer brands whilst Russian tanks roll into Ukraine.
“It’s time to get serious and show Mad Vlad that he has no friends left in Europe.
“If Macron doesn’t remove Putin’s honour, then he’ll lose his own.”
Recently-sanctioned oil billionaire Gennady Timchenko was also handed the honour in 2013 for his contribution to Franco-Russian economic ties.
Meanwhile, more than 600 people have signed a petition to stop a Kremlin-backed oil tanker arriving in Orkney off Scotland tomorrow.
NS Champion belongs to Sovcomflot, Russia’s largest shipping company.
Aimee Nourse’s petition says it would be an insult to Ukraine if the ship was allowed to berth in peaceful waters to collect crude oil.
Orkney Islands Council said: “We recognise the strength of feeling around this — feelings that we share — but we are bound by our legal obligations to accept the vessel, until the UK Government tells us otherwise.”
