Russian President, Vladimir Putin is waiting for the official results from the US presidential election before congratulating a winner, the Kremlin said on Monday November 9.
“We consider it correct to wait for the official results to be finalised. I want to remind you that President Putin repeatedly said he will respect the choice of the American people,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Recall when Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election over Hillary Clinton, Putin congratulated him within an hour.
Many world leaders have since congratulated President-elect Joe Biden since he was announced as the 46th President of the United States of America on Saturday, November 7. Although, President Donald Trump is yet to concede defeat in the election.
Peskov said that this election was different because of the legal challenges that Trump, who has refused to concede defeat, is planning to take over the vote.
“The difference is quite obvious… then there were no announcements of legal challenges,” Peskov said.
He added that Moscow is ready to work with whoever is declared the winner of the US election.
“We hope that with the next president of the United States it will be possible to re-establish a dialogue and together agree on ways to normalize our bilateral relations,” he said.
