Vladimir Putin Congratulates Donald Trump, Calls Him a 'Brave' Man

Russian President Vladimir Putin is finally weighing in on the 2024 U.S. election, extending his congratulations to Donald Trump on his victory and commending his courage after surviving his July assassination attempt.

At an international forum in Sochi Thursday, Putin shared his admiration for Trump, saying, "His behavior at the moment of an attempt on his life left an impression on me. He turned out to be a brave man."

The Russian leader added ... "He manifested himself in the very correct way, bravely as a man."

Putin also noted Trump’s comments about wanting to improve U.S.-Russia relations and potentially help end the Ukrainian crisis were worthy of attention. This comes after the Kremlin cautiously welcomed Trump’s claim he could resolve the Ukraine conflict in 24 hours ... though they’re waiting for concrete policy steps to back that up.

Putin emphasized that, since this will be Trump’s final presidential term, his actions will carry even more weight -- and for that reason, he’s ready to talk.

The FBI's probe of alleged ties between Trump's 2016 presidential election campaign and Russia did not result in any charges, and an official review found flaws in the investigation.

We reached out to Trump's reps ... so far, no word back.