Russia is confident in its imminent victory against Ukraine following president-elect Donald Trump’s victory in the US elections, the Washington Post reported on Thursday.
Following the US election, Putin officially congratulated Trump on his victory while speaking at the Valadai forum in Sochi, saying that the West’s post-Cold War monopoly on global power was “irrevocably disappearing."
He then went on to praise Trump for behaving “courageously” during the assassination attempt this summer, the Washington Post quoted.
“His words about his desire to restore relations with the Russian Federation and to help resolve the Ukrainian crisis, in my opinion, deserve attention."
During his campaign, Trump had said that he would end the Ukraine-Russia war "in one day."
"I know Zelensky very well, and I know Putin very well, even better. And I had a good relationship, very good with both of them. I would tell Zelensky no more. You got to make a deal. I would tell Putin, if you don't make a deal, we're going to give him a lot. We're going to [give Ukraine] more than they ever got if we have to. I will have the deal done in one day. One day," Trump told Fox News in July.
While Putin expressed optimism about the war and Trump’s potential to aid peace efforts, other Russian officials have been more direct, the Washington Post reported.
“We have won,” said Alexander Dugin, Russian ultra-nationalist ideologue on X/Twitter. “The world will be never ever like before. Globalists have lost their final combat."
Konstantin Malofeyev, an Orthodox monarchist oligarch, wrote on Telegram that a deal with Trump could involve “both the division of Europe and the division of the world. After our victory on the battlefield.”
Caution of Trump
However, some in Russia remain cautious. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated that Moscow harbors no illusions about Trump.
"Russia will work with the new administration when it 'takes up residence' in the White House, fiercely defending Russian national interests and focusing on achieving all the set objectives of the special military operation (in Ukraine)," the ministry said, as reported by Reuters.
"Our conditions are unchanged and are well known in Washington."
Kirill Dmitriev, the influential head of Russia's sovereign wealth fund, said a Trump victory could be a chance to repair ties.
"This opens up new opportunities for resetting relations between Russia and the United States," he added.
Ukraine appeals to Trump
Ukraine, meanwhile, appealed directly to Trump on Wednesday via X, aiming to retain his support for Kyiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was among the first to congratulate Trump, despite Trump’s criticisms of extensive US military and financial support for Kyiv. Trump has vowed to quickly end the war but without specifics.
In a message posted shortly after Trump's win was announced, Zelensky said he looked forward to an "era of a strong United States of America under President Trump's decisive leadership."