Russian President Vladimir Putin at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2016. Thomson Reuters ST. PETERSBURG, Russia — President Vladimir Putin on Friday said he accepted that the US was probably still the world's sole superpower and that he was ready to work with whoever won the presidency, but he added that he didn't want to be told how to live by Americans.

Putin's comments follow a rocky period in US-Russia relations, which have been undermined by disagreements over issues such as the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria.

Putin reiterated criticism of what he said was the misguided role of the US in Ukraine's affairs and said he opposed what he cast as US efforts to prevent Russia from repairing its relations with the European Union.

But he had some positive words too.

"America is a great power — today probably the only superpower. We accept that," Putin said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. "We want to and are ready to work with the United States."

Asked about Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, Putin appeared to play down positive comments he had made about him in the past, saying those had been misinterpreted.

In December, Putin described Trump as "very flamboyant," "very talented," and "an absolute leader in the presidential race."

Those comments, along with warm words from Trump about Putin, have fueled speculation the Kremlin would be pleased to see Trump in the White House.

But Putin said Friday that he had described Trump only as "flamboyant."

"He is, isn't he?" Putin said with a smile. "I did not give any other assessment of him."

Putin said he welcomed Trump's desire to restore US-Russia ties. "What's wrong with that?" Putin asked, drawing applause from the audience.

He appeared keen to hedge Russia's bets, however, by avoiding the impression he was taking sides, and he also emphasized his "warm relations" with former US President Bill Clinton, whose wife, Hillary, is the Democratic presidential frontrunner.

Putin said he was grateful for the attention and respect Bill Clinton had shown to Russia and Putin personally.

He had less to say about Hillary Clinton though, saying he had never worked with her directly.

(Reporting by Christian Lowe, Alexander Winning, Katya Golubkova and Elena Fabrichnaya; Writing by Jason Bush and Polina Devitt; Editing by Andrew Osborn)