Moscow, Russia - Russian President Vladimir Putin is waiting for a "signal" from his counterpart Donald Trump to kick-start talks on ending the Ukraine war, the Kremlin said Friday.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told journalists: "Putin is ready. We are waiting for signals" from the US.

Putin and the newly inaugurated American president have both said they are willing to meet for talks on Ukraine.

Trump has threatened Russia with tougher economic sanctions if Moscow does not agree to end the conflict.

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Peskov said that he could not comment further on a meeting between the leaders, saying it was "hard to read coffee grounds" to predict the future.

He also rejected a claim from Trump that the conflict in Ukraine could be ended by lowering the price Russia receives for its oil, saying: "This conflict does not depend on oil prices."

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, Trump said that he would ask Saudi Arabia and OPEC to lower oil prices, saying: "If the price came down, the Russia-Ukraine war would end immediately."

Peskov said the conflict was instead based on "threats to Russia's national security" and "threats to Russians" living in Ukraine and "the lack of desire and complete refusal of Americans and Europeans to listen to Russia's concerns."

Moscow also wants to resume nuclear disarmament "as soon as possible."

Russia pulled out of the last remaining arms control agreement – New START – in 2023 amid a sharp deterioration in relations between the two countries.

Four year before that, the two powers had withdrawn from the landmark 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty concluded by then-US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, which limited the use of medium-range missiles, both conventional and nuclear.

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Both have indicated they will unilaterally adhere to the warhead limits outlined in New START until 2026, but they are yet to agree on a replacement and talks have stalled for months.

"The ball is in the Americans' court, who have stopped all substantive contacts," Peskov insisted.