Putin trusts ‘intelligent Trump’ will end Ukraine war

London: Vladimir Putin has praised Donald Trump as an “intelligent” politician who will find a solution to the war in Ukraine, while threatening to turn key targets in Kyiv “to dust”.

The Russian president said he was ready for dialogue with the United States, but believed the outgoing Biden administration was trying to create difficulties for the president-elect.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, visiting Kazakhstan, praised Donald Trump as “intelligent” while threatening to turn key targets in Ukraine to “dust”. Credit: AP

His comments at a press conference on Thursday (Friday AEDT) in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan came as Moscow launched a fresh wave of attacks against Ukrainian energy infrastructure with missiles and drones, in what Putin said was retaliation for Kyiv’s hitting Russian territory with long-range American missiles.

“As far as I imagine the again-elected president, he is actually an intelligent person, already quite experienced. I think he will find a solution,” Putin said.

He also expressed concerns for Trump’s safety after assassination attempts during the presidential campaign. Putin said he had been shocked by “the absolutely uncivilised methods used to battle against Trump”.

“In my opinion, he is not safe now,” he said, adding: “Unfortunately, in the history of the United States various incidents have happened ... I think he is intelligent, and I hope he’s cautious and understands this.”

Ukrainian pyrotechnists examine an X-55 Russian aviation cruise missile that was shot down in Kyiv on Thursday.Credit: Ukrainian Emergency Service,/AP

He said that not even “bandits” in Russia would stoop as low as some American political opponents in their “revolting” treatment of Trump’s family during the campaign.

Russia and Ukraine have been engaged in an escalating cycle of strikes against each other in recent weeks. While attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure have long been a tactic used by Russia, some analysts say both sides are also trying to improve their negotiating position before Trump’s inauguration on January 20.

Putin has a history of making positive remarks about Trump, and in 2022 the incoming president described the Russian leader’s invasion of Ukraine as “genius” and “savvy”.

Mutual admiration: Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump at the G20 Summit in Hamburg in 2017.Credit: AP

After President Joe Biden gave approval to Kyiv to use American long-range ATACMS missiles against targets on Russian territory this month, key Trump allies accused Biden of seeking to spark “world war three” before Trump’s presidential inauguration in January.

Putin reiterated terms set out in June that Russia would end the war in Ukraine if Kyiv agreed to abandon its NATO ambitions and hand over four provinces claimed by Moscow – a deal Kyiv has rejected as tantamount to surrender.

He is reportedly hoping that Trump will attempt to broker a peace deal with Ukraine that will cement Russian territorial gains when the former president re-enters the White House in January.

In the meantime, he increased the pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to surrender.

“We do not rule out the use of Oreshnik [missiles] against the military, military-industrial facilities or decision-making centres, including in Kyiv,” Putin said.

He added that the Oreshnik missile Moscow first deployed last week in a strike on Dnipro could destroy even highly protected underground sites and that Russia had commenced its serial production.

Putin boasted at the press conference that the impact of the missile was “powerful, like a meteorite falling”, and comparable in strength to a nuclear strike when used several times at once.

Zelensky said his Russian counterpart was seeking to disrupt Trump’s efforts to bring the conflict to an end.

“Putin wants to escalate the situation now so that President Trump fails so that he cannot end the war,” Zelensky shared in a post on Telegram, adding that the Russian president voiced “his readiness to kill and destroy” at his press conference.

He said Putin was responsible for the war and “the only one who believes in war”.

“That is why Putin’s escalation now serves as a pressure to later force the American president to accept Russia’s terms,” Zelensky said.

Zelensky said Russia used cruise missiles with cluster munitions in the overnight attack, which cut power to more than 1 million people, something he called a “despicable escalation”.

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