Russian leader Vladimir Putin congratulated Donald Trump on his victory

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Donald Trump on his US election victory in his first public comments on the vote, and praised the president-elect’s courage during an assassination attempt in July.

“His behavior at the time of the attempt on his life left an impression on me. He proved to be a brave man,” Putin told an international forum after speaking in the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Thursday (Friday AEDT).

“He expressed himself in a very correct way, bravely as a man,” he added.

Putin also said that what Trump said “about the desire to restore relations with Russia, to help end the Ukrainian crisis, in my opinion, deserves at least attention.”

The Kremlin earlier welcomed Trump’s claim that he could negotiate an end to the conflict in Ukraine “within 24 hours”, but stressed that it would wait for concrete political steps.

“I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate him on his election as president of the United States of America,” Putin said in a question-and-answer session at the conference.

On what he expects from the second Trump administration, Putin said: “I don’t know what will happen now. I have no idea.”

“This is still his last presidential term. What he will do is his business,” Putin said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday that the Kremlin is not ruling out contact between Putin and Trump before the inauguration, given that Trump “said he would call Putin before the inauguration.”

Peskov emphasized that Moscow views the US as an “enemy” country that is directly involved in the Ukrainian conflict.

He rejected arguments that Putin’s failure to quickly reach out to Trump could damage future ties, saying Moscow’s relations with Washington were already at “the lowest point in history” and arguing that new US leadership would turn things around.

The Kremlin’s cautious stance reflected its view of the US vote as a choice between two unattractive options.

While Trump is known for his admiration for Putin, the Russian leader has repeatedly noted that during Trump’s first term there were “so many restrictions and sanctions against Russia that no president before him has put in place.”