Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated Donald Trump on his election victory, calling the former U.S. president a “real man” and commending his courage after surviving an assassination attempt in July.
At the Valdai discussion club in Sochi, Putin expressed his admiration for Trump’s resilience, saying, “He behaved, in my opinion, in a very correct way, courageously, like a real man.” These are Putin’s first comments since Trump triumphed over Kamala Harris in the U.S. election.
The Russian president, 72, also reflected on Trump’s first term in office, stating that he believed the American leader had been “bullied” during his time in the White House. Putin’s remarks come amid growing concern over Ukraine’s future, with Trump’s reported stance on the conflict suggesting a potential shift in U.S. foreign policy.
Putin’s acknowledgement of Trump’s victory followed a statement from Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, who addressed Trump’s ambitious claim during the campaign that he could end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours of assuming office. Peskov described this as an “over-exaggeration” but suggested that a Trump administration might be better positioned to seek peace in the region than the current Biden administration.
Peskov noted, “Certainly, nothing can heal this problem overnight, but at least if the new administration is going to look for peace, not for the continuation of the war, it will be better.”
Trump’s reported plan to end the conflict centres around freezing the war and establishing a demilitarised zone along the front line. An anonymous Trump team member revealed that while the plan will not involve U.S. troops, American forces may provide training and other support. European nations are expected to take on the role of peacekeeping. “We are not sending American men and women to uphold peace in Ukraine. And we are not paying for it. Get the Poles, Germans, British, and French to do it,” the source said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated Trump after his victory but has yet to comment publicly on the specifics of Trump’s plan. However, the proposal highlights the shifting dynamics of international diplomacy and the potential realignment of U.S. foreign policy under a second Trump administration.
