MOSCOW: Russia on Wednesday expressed relief as it congratulated Barack Obama on his victory over a US presidential election rival who once notoriously branded Moscow as Washington's main foe.
The Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin reacted "positively" to Obama's victory over Mitt Romney. Others expressed satisfaction at having narrowly avoided dealing with a Republican who sometimes spoke in tones from the Cold War.
The Russian leader's personal congratulation for Obama delivered by telegram would soon be followed a personal phone call, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
"We hope that the positive beginnings that have taken hold in Russian-US relations on the world arena will grow in the interests of international security and stability," Russian news agencies quoted Peskov as saying.
Peskov's comment referred specifically to the "reset" in relations that Obama launched with Putin's presidential predecessor Dmitry Medvedev in 2009 following nearly a decade of distant ties.
Relations between Moscow and Washington began to sour again three years into the "reset" when Putin voiced his plans to return to the Kremlin for a third term.
The Russian strongman then blamed the protests that emerged against his imminent comeback on US State Department funding -- a charge that chilled relations still further.
Putin's own March 4 election win was followed by a pointed week of silence from Obama that was broken only by a call to discuss urgent Syria matters that included a formal extension of congratulations.
The delay was largely seen as a signal from Washington that it intended to take Putin to task over his perceived crackdown on freedoms and decision to centralise controls after four years of Medvedev's less harsh style.
But Russian officials were far more effusive in welcoming Obama's victory.
Medvedev now serving as Putin's prime minister said he was especially pleased Russia had avoided the complications that could have come from Romney winning the White House.
"I am glad that the president of this very large and influential country will not be someone who views Russia as its enemy number one," news agencies quoted Medvedev as saying.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also welcomed the result. "We are ready to cooperate on equitable terms, with mutual benefit, mutual respect.
To go as far as the US administration is willing to go," he said in a Twitter message.
But Russian-US relations are currently suffering another low. The US campaign was marked by repeated attempts by Russian lawmakers to portray the United States as an less democratic country than their own.
One unusual independent Russian monitors' report of the US election process even concluded that the US vote "did not meet international principles" because it forced people to register for election in advance.
But some observers close to the Kremlin believe Obama intends to pursue nuclear disarmament and take a more conciliatory stance on Europe missile defence a particular Moscow irritant.
"The biggest thing Putin values in politicians is their ability to agree to things and keep their promises," said Putin ruling party member and pro-Kremlin political strategist Segrei Markov.
"Obama is highly regarded by Putin in this respect," Markov stressed.
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