Moscow Still Open to Talks With US, Kremlin Says After Trump Election Win

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov at Gostiny Dvor exhibition hall in central Moscow, Russia, on Dec. 14, 2023. Alexander Zemlianichenko/AFP via Getty Images

Moscow is still prepared to hold talks with the United States, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said, after former president Donald Trump secured a fresh four-year term in the White House.

Speaking to reporters on Nov. 6, Peskov said Russian President Vladimir Putin “has repeatedly said that he is open to a constructive dialogue [with Washington] based on justice, equality, and mutual respect for each other’s concerns.”

“But today, the U.S. administration holds a contrary position. Let’s wait and see what happens in January,” Peskov said. “We will primarily make conclusions based on [Trump’s] statements on issues that are on our agenda, when we receive them, and on his first concrete steps.”

Peskov made the remarks after Trump, a Republican, secured a decisive victory against his opponent from the Democratic Party, Vice President Kamala Harris, in the U.S. presidential election.

Trump, 78, who previously served as America’s 45th president, will be inaugurated again—as the country’s 47th chief executive—on Jan. 20.

In 2022, nearly two years after Trump left office, Russia invaded and effectively annexed large swathes of eastern and southeastern Ukraine.

Since then, the United States under President Joe Biden has remained one of Ukraine’s staunchest supporters, providing Kyiv with a vast array of military hardware—along with billions of dollars—to stave off the Russian invasion.

In the run-up to this year’s presidential race, Trump repeatedly vowed to swiftly end the conflict in Ukraine.

Peskov went on to describe the United States as an “unfriendly country that is directly and indirectly involved in a war against [Russia].”

While dozens of foreign heads of state have congratulated Trump on his electoral victory, Putin has not yet done so.

When asked if relations between the two countries might deteriorate further if Putin declined to congratulate Trump, Peskov said that “it is almost impossible to worsen them further.”

Relations between the two nuclear powers, he said, “are at their historically lowest point.”

‘Substantial Step Forward’

Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, described Trump’s promises to prioritize U.S. domestic issues as a “substantial step forward.”

“[Trump] has been saying that America is actually sick and that American society needs to solve these domestic issues,” she said in remarks carried by Russia’s TASS news agency.

Former President Donald Trump is joined by his family and his running mate as he declares victory at his election night watch party in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Nov. 6, 2024. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

Zakharova went on to assert that Trump’s stated positions were radically different from those espoused by what she called “ultra-liberal circles.”

In a subsequent statement on the outcome of the U.S. election, Russia’s foreign ministry said that Moscow would continue to defend its national interests regardless of who occupied the White House.

“Russia will work with the new administration ... by firmly defending its national interests and staying focused on achieving all goals set in the special military operation,” the ministry stated, referring to Moscow’s ongoing invasion of eastern Ukraine. “Our terms have not changed and are well-known in Washington.”

Putin has repeatedly laid down Moscow’s terms for ending the conflict, which is now well into its third year.

These include the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from all territories claimed by Russia, along with guarantees that Ukraine will never join NATO.

Kyiv has rejected these terms and vowed to continue fighting Russian forces until all lost territories are recovered.