"Despite the fact that he is a first-time president, he is a quick study and he understands very well that this level, where we are, engaging in mutual accusations, this is a road to nowhere," he said.
Asked if Trump was an effective leader, Putin replied, "He clearly has leadership qualities. They are clearly present because he takes responsibility for making decisions… This is undoubtedly a sign of having leadership qualities."
The Russian President denied being treated with reverence by his US counterpart, whom he described as an experienced and pragmatic businessman.
"I don’t think he treats me personally with reverence. I believe that he is an experienced person," Putin said.
"He’s a businessman with vast experience," he added. "And he understands that if it is necessary to establish a cooperative relationship with someone then you have to treat your current or potential partner with respect. Otherwise nothing will come of it. I think this is a purely pragmatic approach."
The two heads of state met last year on the margins of the G20 Summit in Hamburg, Germany. In a documentary released earlier this week, Putin said he was not disappointed with Donald Trump because one could negotiate with him.
Asked if he ever reads Trump’s tweets, Putin replied, "No," and added he never tweets because he has "other ways of expressing my point of view or implementing a decision. Donald is a more modern individual."
The Russian president spoke with an NBC anchor on two occasions in Russia last week for a special show, "Confronting Putin," airing Friday night.
During the interview, the Russian head of state denied giving orders or in any way encouraging anyone to interfere in the 2016 US presidential elections.
Pressured on whether he condoned alleged meddling, Putin said, "No, we don’t encourage them and we don’t order them."
He said individuals – who could have been Russians but not government officials – could have sent information on the elections from anywhere around the world.
"You tell me they are Russians. So what? Maybe, being Russian, they were working for some kind of an American company," Putin said, adding there were 146 million Russians.