Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he preferred Joe Biden to Donald Trump but was willing to work with any U.S. president

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he preferred Joe Biden to Donald Trump but was willing to work with any U.S. president, per Reuters.

Putin responded promptly: "Biden. He is a more seasoned, foreseeable individual, a politician of the old guard." With a slight smile, he added, "But we will cooperate with any U.S. president whom the American people trust." This marked Putin's first public commentary on the 2024 U.S. election race, where Biden and Trump are expected to contend for the presidency again.

Amidst high political uncertainty in the U.S. and with bilateral relations at their lowest in over six decades, Putin's remarks are likely seen as provocative rather than sincere. Biden has spearheaded the Western response to Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, including expanding the NATO alliance, imposing multiple rounds of sanctions on Moscow, and providing Kyiv with billions in aid and weaponry.

Given Trump's initial reluctance to criticize Putin and his recent remarks — such as suggesting he would encourage Russia to attack NATO members failing to meet defense spending targets — his critics fear he would be more lenient toward the Kremlin leader.

Putin expressed his views on the two candidates and even touched on Biden's mental acuity, though he claimed it would be improper to interfere in the campaign. "When I met Biden in Switzerland — albeit several years ago, three years ago — people were already saying he wasn't up to the task. I didn't observe any such thing," Putin remarked.

While seemingly defending Biden, Putin referenced a moment that embarrassed the U.S. leader when he hit his head while disembarking from a helicopter in June last year. "Well, who among us hasn't bumped their head somewhere?" Putin quipped.

Regarding Trump, Putin described him as "a non-systemic politician with his own perspective on how the United States should manage relations with its allies."

Putin, who has held power as president or prime minister since 1999, is 71, a decade younger than Biden and six years younger than Trump. He is poised to secure another six-year term in an upcoming election, from which two anti-war candidates have been disqualified for submitting invalid documentation.

In 2020, a U.S. Senate intelligence committee report concluded that Russia had attempted to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election to aid Trump, who defeated Hillary Clinton.