Putin Compliments Donald Trump, Calls him an ‘Absolute Leader’

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who addressed a wide range of topics in his news conference, took the time to praise U.S. presidential hopeful, Donald Trump, who is the Republican leader in the polls.

"He's a very colorful person. Talented, without any doubt. But it's not our affair to determine his worthiness. That's up to the United States voters." Putin said to ABC News after his more than three-hour long news conference in which he fielded questions from hundreds of journalists about topics such as Russia's plans for Syria and the nation's situation with Turkey.

Putin's nod to Trump appears to be stemmed from the fact that the Russian leader wants a better relationship between Russia and the U.S.

"He wants to move to a different level of relations, to more solid, deeper relations with Russia. And how can Russia not welcome that? We welcome that," Putin said before adding," As for his internal political issues and his turns of speech which he uses to raise his popularity, I repeat, it's not our job to judge them."

Prior to his comments about Trump, the leader talked about Syria, Turkey and other conflicts. In regards to Russia's involvement with the war in Syria, where the Islamic State is based in, Putin stated that they would continue to intervene until Syria is "preparing elections." He did not give an exact time line.

Although Russia's stance in the Syrian Civil War is different from the U.S., who is not backing President Bashar al-Assad, Putin talked a lot about improving ties with the U.S. Putin and the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry recently met to discuss the situation in Syria. Kerry stated that both countries are heading "in the same direction."

Putin added both nations are ready to "move toward settling the issues that can only be settled through joint efforts.

Putin also talked about tensions with Turkey, which started after a Russian warplane was shot down by Turkish jets in November. Since the downing, Russia and Turkey have been sending verbal jabs at one another.

"Life has shown that it is difficult to us, practically impossible, to come to terms with the incumbent Turkish administration," Putin said. "Even when and where we say that we agree they stab us in the side or in the back, for absolutely unclear reasons."

Putin continued to suggest that one reason why Turkey shot down the plane was to please the U.S. When asked about Ukraine, Putin addressed the rumors that there is a presence of Russian forces in southeast Ukraine, stating that they do not have regular troops there.

"We never said that we did not have people there who are dealing with certain issues," Putin said. "But there are no regular Russian troops there. Feel the difference!"

On a more domestic level, Putin expressed his satisfaction with Russia's Central Bank, which has increased interest rates to combat high inflation.

Finally, on a personal level, Putin clarified his daughters' roles, stating that they are not involved in business or politics. Rumors have circulated that a woman named Katerina Tikhonova, who holds a high position that involves overseeing millions of dollars, could be tied to Putin. Putin did not directly deny these rumors.

Other topics that Putin talked about included the FIFA scandal and the economy in Russia.