Speaking to reporters in Kazakhstan on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed praise for President-Elect Donald Trump calling him an intelligent and experienced politician capable of finding “solutions” as tensions over the War in Ukraine have ramped up in the past several weeks.

Putin during his remarks took shots at President Joe Biden for creating additional difficulties for the incoming administration after Biden authorized Ukraine to use the U.S.-made Army Tactical Missile System or ATACMS against Russia. The missile system has the capability of hitting targets inside of Russia and Biden’s authorization prompted the U.K. and France to allow their long-range missile systems to be used as well.

The Russian president also threatened to to strike Ukraine again with a nuclear-capable ballistic missile, called Oreshnik, after Moscow attacked key energy infrastructure overnight on Thursday leaving 1 million homes in Ukraine without power.

Vladimir Putin launches ‘revenge attack with ICBM’ after Ukraine strikes Russia with UK missiles

We will use the means at our disposal, Putin said. We do not exclude the use of Oreshnik against the (Ukrainian) military, against military industrial facilities, or against decision-making centers, including in Kyiv, bearing in mind that the Kyiv authorities today continue to attempt to strike our vital facilities.

Putin replied to a question asking him to clarify what are considered “decision-making centers” by saying You know, in Soviet times there was a joke about weather forecasts? Heres the forecast: today, during the day, anything is possible.

Russia fired nearly 200 missiles and drones on Thursday leaving more than a million households without power, Ukrainian officials told the Associated Press. This is Russias second major aerial attack on Ukraines power grid in less than two weeks which has amplified fears that the Kremlin aims to cripple the countrys power generation capacity before winter.

Putin, when asked on Thursday how Biden’s authorization would impact the future relationship between Moscow and Washington suggested that relations have the potential to improve under the new Trump administration.

As far as I can imagine, the newly elected president is an intelligent and already quite experienced person. I think he will find a solution, Putin said.

Putin’s tone on Thursday is in stark contrast to the rhetoric coming out of the Kremlin the past several weeks which has accused Biden of “escalating” the conflict by allowing the use of ATACMS by Ukraine. Putin has suggested in the past the use of long-range missiles inside of Russia would mean war between NATO and Russia.

This would in a significant way change the very nature of the conflict. It would mean that NATO countries, the US, European countries, are at war with Russia, Putin told Russian state TV in September.

Trump has repeatedly vowed to end the war “within 24 hours” without giving any details as to how. Trump during the campaign also often refused to answer the question of whether he wants Ukraine to win the war. On Wednesday he announced he would be nominating Gen. Keith Kellogg to be special envoy to the warring countries.

Together, we will secure PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH, and Make America, and the World, SAFE AGAIN! Trump wrote on social media, announcing his pick.

Speaking in the Kazakh capital Astana on Thursday, Putin also spoke of the assignation attempts on the president-elect, as well as the legal battles Trump had been in during much of the campaign.

“Absolutely uncivilized means of struggle were used against Trump more than once, adding that he fears the president-elect is not currently safe,” Putin said.

He referred to the criminal cases against Trump as humiliating, unfounded judicial procedures.” Trump became the first former U.S. President to be convicted of a crime after leaving office when in June, a Manhattan jury found Trump guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in his hush money criminal trial.

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