Trump, who will return to the White House in January, has called for negotiations to begin, stoking fears in Kyiv that he could force Ukraine to accept peace on terms favourable to Moscow.
He spoke as Kyiv said Russian attacks on northeastern Ukraine had killed three people and as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held talks with EU leaders in Brussels.
The traditional annual question-and-answer sessions are largely a televised show while also being a rare setting in which Putin is put on the spot with some uncomfortable questions.
Asked about Trump's overtures regarding a possible peace deal, Putin said he would welcome a meeting with the incoming Republican.
“If we ever have a meeting with President-elect Trump, I am sure we’ll have a lot to talk about,“ he said, adding that Russia was ready for “negotiations and compromises”.
Russia's troops have been advancing in eastern Ukraine for months, with Putin repeatedly touting their prowess on the battlefield.
“We will absolutely kick them out. Absolutely. It can’t be any other way. But the question of a specific date, I’m sorry, I cannot say right now,“ he said.
He insisted that the situation was “stable, despite external threats”, citing low unemployment and industrial growth.
He acknowledged, too, that Western sanctions were a factor -- while not of “key significance”. He hoped the central bank, expected to raise interest rates again Friday to cool inflation, would take a “balanced” decision, he added.
Putin appeared to repeat his threat to strike Kyiv with Russia's new hypersonic ballistic missile, dubbed Oreshnik.
“Let them set some target to be hit, let’s say in Kyiv,“ he said.
Zelensky hit back by saying: “People are dying and he thinks it’s ‘interesting’.. Dumbass.”
The former KGB agent also made a rare criticism of the security services.
“We must not allow such very serious blunders to happen.”
Asked if he would do anything differently if he could go back to February 2022, when he launched the Ukraine offensive, Putin said he only regretted not having done it sooner.
And Russia “should have started preparing for these events, including the special military operation”, he said, using Moscow’s official term for the conflict.
“You want to present what is happening in Syria as a defeat for Russia. I assure you it is not,“ Putin said.
Putin said he had not yet met Assad, who fled to Moscow as rebels closed in on Damascus, but planned to soon.
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