Russian President Vladimir Putin said he is "ready" to hold talks with Donald Trump, whom he called "courageous," while congratulating him on his victory in the U.S. presidential election.
"I take this opportunity to congratulate him," Putin said in remarks to the Valdai forum in the southern city of Sochi on Thursday.
Asked whether he was open to holding talks with Trump, the Russian leader said: "Ready."
Ahead of the U.S. vote, Putin had publicly said he would prefer to see Joe Biden, and then Kamala Harris, in the White House, when asked which candidate might be best for Russia.
But Moscow has long been seen as welcoming Trump's anti-establishment credentials and the chaos he has injected into American and global politics.
Moscow was widely accused of interfering in the 2016 presidential election to boost Trump's campaign against Hillary Clinton. The Kremlin has repeatedly rejected those charges.
The Kremlin leader on Thursday also said he was impressed by how Trump handled himself during an assassination attempt at a rally earlier this year.
"He turned out to be a courageous person," Putin said.
"People show who they are in extraordinary circumstances. This is where a person reveals himself. And he showed himself, in my opinion, in a very correct manner, courageously. Like a man," Putin said.
Trump, a Republican, beat Democratic candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential race, securing a massive 295 Electoral College votes at current, well above the required 270.
The victory marks Trump's return to the presidency for a second and final term.
