Former President Donald Trump responded to comments made by Russian President Vladimir Putin, in which he said he prefers President Joe Biden in the White House — and his response was precisely what one might expect.

During a speech in South Carolina, Trump embraced Putin’s preference for Biden by calling it a “great compliment” while touting his hardline stance against the Kremlin while he was in office.

Former President Donald Trump reacted to Russian President Vladimir Putin saying he prefers President Joe Biden over Trump because Biden is "more experienced" and "more predictable" -- which Trump called a "great compliment."

"President Putin of Russia has just given me a great compliment, actually," Trump said at a campaign rally in North Charleston, South Carolina, on Wednesday.

"He just said that he would much rather have Joe Biden as president than Trump," he continued. "Now that's a compliment. ... And of course, he would say that."

The former president continued, highlighting the actions he took against Russia during his tenure in the White House.

At the North Charleston rally, Trump said it's a given Putin would prefer Biden's victory because he himself put a break on Russia's interest while he was president, especially on the construction of Nord Stream 2, a controversial German-Russian pipeline, which would have carried natural gas from Russia to Europe.

"I stopped Nord Stream 2, and [Biden] approved it right after I left, so Putin is not a fan of mine actually," Trump said, referring to his role as president in halting the construction of the pipeline by imposing sanctions on it, and Biden's subsequent waiver of sanctions on the pipeline, which critics believed would give Russia an energy dominance over Europe.

Trump then turned his attention to President Biden, claiming that Putin knows that under his administration, “he’s going to be given everything he wants, including Ukraine.”

The former president’s remarks come after Putin told a reporter that, from Russia’s perspective, Biden would be the favored candidate to occupy the White House.

This candid revelation on Putin’s part seems to mark a significant departure from the Kremlin’s perceived favor toward Trump. However, there could be more to this than it seems.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday Joe Biden would be better for Russia as president than Donald Trump, ahead of a potential rematch between the two in this year’s U.S. election.

“[Biden] is a more experienced, predictable person. He is a politician of the old school. But we will work with any leader of the United States, who is trusted by the American people,” Putin said in an interview on broadcaster Rossiya 1 TV when asked to choose between the two.

Trump faced criticism during his presidency for his friendly relationship with Putin and recently stirred controversy by saying he’d “encourage” Russia to do “whatever the hell they want” to NATO allies that don’t meet defense spending targets. The Russian leader has previously also dismissed evidence that his country meddled in the 2016 vote to elect Trump.

Putin used Wednesday’s interview to downplay speculation about Biden’s cognitive health, recalling when the two met in Switzerland in June 2021, less than a year before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

“When I met with Biden in Switzerland — it was, indeed, a few years ago, three years — even then there were talks about him being incompetent. I saw nothing of the sort. Yes, he glanced at his notes. Honestly, I glanced at mine too,” Putin said. “There’s nothing to it.”

Putin and Trump’s comments underscore a broader debate about the nature of U.S. foreign policy, especially when it comes to the war in Ukraine, which has been a contentious issue in American politics. As the election season trudges on, there will be more speculation about the future of Washington’s approach to the Kremlin and in other areas of foreign policy.