Putin congratulates Trump on winning the election

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated US president-elect Donald Trump on his election night win in America.

Putin said in a telegram to Trump that he hopes they can "work together toward the end of the crisis in Russian-American relations, as well address the pressing issues of the international agenda and the search for effective responses to global security challenges."

The Kremlin announced the telegram on Wednesday.

Trump famously cozied up to Putin throughout his campaign. Political pundits lobbied criticism at Trump for saying flattering things about Putin, who has a history of antagonizing the US.

But in his speech early Wednesday morning, Trump said he will work toward cooperating with other countries that wish to cooperate with us.

In a surprise upset on Election Day, Trump defeated Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, who was thought to be the likeliest winner of the White House.