MOSCOW — After the outpouring of euphoria among Russia’s political elite over the victory of Donald J. Trump, President Vladimir V. Putin on Thursday gave a more measured response in his annual address to the nation, calling for cooperation but expressing misgivings over some of Mr. Trump’s statements about nuclear weapons.



The Russian leader appeared remarkably subdued at what was widely seen as a moment of triumph for him, with his popularity rising on a cresting wave of anti-establishment and often pro-Russian populism in Europe and America.

Speaking to an audience of political and economic barons in the ornate St. George’s Hall of the Great Kremlin Palace, Mr. Putin praised his compatriots for rallying around “patriotic values” and, counterintuitively, for eschewing the lure of populism.

He lamented that around the world, “even in the most seemingly affluent countries and stable regions, more and more fractures and conflicts on political, ethnic, religious and social grounds are rising.”