President-elect Donald Trump said he is planning a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying he wants to end the "bloody mess" of the Ukraine war.

A senior Moscow official says the Kremlin welcomes U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s readiness to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Ahead of Trump's inauguration on January 20, the President-elect has said he is planning a meeting with Russia's leader, which the Kremlin has denied.

President-elect Donald Trump said late Thursday he is ready to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and that the meeting is currently being arranged, though he gave no timeline for when it might take place.

The Kremlin said Friday that President Vladimir Putin is open to meeting with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, following Trump's comments the day before that preparations for such talks were underway.

The comments by Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesperson, came after Trump answered questions about a possible meeting with Putin by saying “we’re setting it up”, while adding he would prefer to wait until after his inauguration on January 20.

President-elect Donald Trump said a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin is being set up, raising the prospect that the incoming US leader could push to start negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.