Eva Deschamps / November 9, 2024
After his presidential election victory, Donald Trump says he's ready for an exchange with Vladimir Putin: “I think we're going to talk to each other”
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump both signaled on Thursday their readiness to resume contact, following the Republican's victory in the US presidential election.
If anyone wants to resume contact, I don't mind. I'm ready,” Putin said at a forum, referring to Trump. “I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate him on his election as President of the United States”.
“I think we're going to talk to each other,” for his part, Donald Trump said of Vladimir Putin on Thursday, in an interview with NBC.
The president-elect said he had already “probably” spoken to 70 foreign leaders since his victory in Tuesday's election.
Prior to the US election, Putin had publicly stated that he would prefer to see Joe Biden, then Kamala Harris, in the White House, deeming them more “predictable” for Moscow than the Republican candidate.
According to a book published by renowned journalist Bob Woodward, Donald Trump has spoken to Vladimir Putin in secret up to seven times since he left the White House in 2021.
The Republican is also said to have secretly sent Covid-19 tests to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin when he was in the White House and at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.
On Thursday, the master of the Kremlin said he was impressed by Trump's handling of an assassination attempt that narrowly missed him at a rally in July.
“People show who they are in extraordinary circumstances. That's when people reveal themselves. And he behaved, in my opinion, very correctly, courageously. Like a man”, said Mr. Putin.
Mr. Trump has repeatedly been criticized for his laudatory remarks about Mr. Putin.