INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday he was ready for talks "anytime" with U.S
President-elect Donald Trump, who has said he can strike a Ukraine peace deal within hours of taking office.Trump, who will return to the
White House in January, has stoked fears in Kyiv that he could force Ukraine to accept peace on terms favorable to Moscow.At his annual
press conference on Thursday, Putin said Russian troops hold the upper hand across the battlefield, but was forced to admit he does not know
when Russia will be able to drive out Ukrainian forces from the southwestern Kursk region.Asked about Trump's overtures regarding a possible
peace deal, Putin said he would welcome a meeting with the incoming president."I don't know when I'm going to see him
He isn't saying anything about it
I haven't talked to him in more than four years
I am ready for it, of course
Any time," Putin said."If we ever have a meeting with President-elect Trump, I am sure we'll have a lot to talk about," he said, adding that
Russia was ready for "negotiations and compromises".The Kremlin recently welcomed Trump's criticism of President Joe Biden's decision to
allow Kyiv to use U.S.-supplied missiles to strike Russian territory.
