In yet another sign of continued animosity between Russia and the United States, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday said that he is still not ready to recognise Joe Biden as the next US President. He, however, asserted that he is ready to work with any US leader.

In a public address, Putin said, “We will work with anyone who has the confidence of the American people. But that confidence can only be given to a candidate whose victory has been recognised by the opposing party, or after the results are confirmed in a legitimate, legal way.”

The Russian President said that the decision to not congratulate Biden is ‘a formality’ with no ulterior motives. He also said that he believes relations between the US and Russia have been ‘ruined’.

When Trump won in 2016, Putin was prompt in offering congratulations – but Trump’s challenger in that election, Hillary Clinton, also conceded the day after the vote.

Just days after the election was called in Biden’s favour, Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that this election is different.

The president added he took the wait-and-see approach as he waited for the post-election dust to settle in the United States.

“It is not that we like or do not like someone — we are simply waiting for an end of this internal political confrontation,” Putin said, adding he had equal respect for both Trump and Biden.

Major US media networks have projected Democratic nominee Joe Biden to be the winner of November’s presidential voting. Trump argues he has won the election but the victory was stolen from him via massive election fraud. He has initiated audits and recounts in several states and has filed a number of lawsuits.