Russian President Vladimir Putin would prefer an American president who is “more constructive” toward Russia and understands the “importance of the dialogue” between the two countries, the Kremlin said on Friday.

Asked whether Putin could work with the Republican front-runner in the U.S. election, former President Donald Trump, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told broadcaster NBC News that the Russian leader would be ready to work with “anyone who will understand that from now on, you have to be more careful with Russia and you have to take into account its concerns.”

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, relations between the West and Moscow have deteriorated, with Washington and its allies imposing wide-ranging sanctions on individuals and entities having links with Moscow regime.

Moscow has long accused the West of igniting and sustaining the war, with Putin saying: “Ukraine has become hostage of the Kyiv regime and its Western masters, which have effectively occupied the country.”

In the interview with NBC, Peskov repeated Moscow’s accusation that the United States of causing the war in Ukraine. “It is a hybrid war that the United States is orchestrating against our country,” he said.