Putin congratulates Trump on election win; says Moscow ready for talks

Vladimir Putin had also praised Trump for displaying courage during the assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 14

Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated Donald Trump on winning the US presidential poll and said that Moscow is ready to have dialogue with the Republican president-elect.

"I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate him on his victory in the US presidential election. I have already said that we will work with any head of state who is trusted by the American people," Putin said while addressing the plenary session of the Valdai International Discussion Club in Sochi on November 7.

As per Al Jazeera, these were the first public remarks from Putin since Trump's victory. He had also praised Trump for displaying courage during the assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 14.

 

"He behaved, in my opinion, in a very correct way - courageously, like a real man," Putin said in his addressat the Valdai discussion club, Al Jazeera reported.  Find special coverage on US Presidential Elections here

Putin also said that Trump's comments "about the desire to restore relations with Russia, to help end the Ukrainian crisis, in my opinion, deserves attention at least".

The Kremlin earlier welcomed Trump's claim that he could negotiate an end to the conflict in Ukraine "in 24 hours" but emphasised that it would wait for concrete policy steps.

Earlier, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow remembered Trump's words on resolving the war in Ukraine but that the incoming US president "exaggerated" the speed at which he could do it. "If the new administration is going to look for peace, not for the continuation of the war, it will be better in comparison with the previous one," Peskov said, according to Al Jazeera.

Moscow has also repeatedly denied US assertions that Russia meddled in the 2024 and other presidential elections and had spread disinformation.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has been putting pressure on its allies to gather more support in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was among the first world leaders to congratulate Trump. "We agreed to maintain close dialogue and advance our cooperation. Strong and unwavering US leadership is vital for the world and for a just peace," Zelenskyy said in a post on X.

As per Al Jazeera, in his past remarks, Trump had suggested that in order to end the war, Ukraine might have to cede territory to Russia to reach a peace deal, something Ukraine has rejected and US President Joe Biden never suggested.

Since 2022, the US has already provided more than USD 64.1bn in military assistance to Ukraine, according to the data by the US Department of State. Foreign policy had been a key issue for the American electorate during the 2024 US Presidential elections.