Putin, speaking at an economic forum in Russia's far east, said a number of countries including the US and China were ready to support a peace settlement.
"Ultimately, however, the problem must be resolved by the countries involved in the conflict - Russia and Ukraine," he said.
"We are grateful to everyone attempting to contribute to a settlement. Is there a chance? In my view, yes, there is."
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha told reporters in Kyiv: "I believe that we will now have a new dynamic in the peace efforts, with the return of this active phase of political and diplomatic engagement in many capitals around the world."
He did not elaborate further, telling reporters to "follow the news".
After four and a half years of Europe's deadliest conflict since World War II, it is rare for either side to offer an upbeat assessment of peace prospects. They last met for US-mediated talks in February.
Since then, with the US distracted by the Iran war, both Russia and Ukraine have ramped up long-range air attacks deep inside the other's territory. Hostilities at sea have escalated sharply with attacks by both sides on ports and commercial shipping, pushing up global grain prices.
However, neither Putin nor Sybiha cited specific reasons to expect progress; on the contrary, the Kremlin leader said Ukraine's latest actions presented an obstacle.
In response to a question, Putin said Ukrainian attacks on civilian merchant ships and "reported threats of attacks on civilian aircraft" were "acts of state terrorism", which he said "complicates the prospects for bilateral peace talks".
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned airlines and insurance companies this week that the presence of Ukrainian drones had made Russian skies dangerous.
He said Ukraine would target only Russian military facilities and not threaten civilian aircraft.
On Wednesday, Ukraine urged the UN's aviation agency to ask members to ban operations in Russian airspace. Ukraine has been cut off from international civil aviation because its own airspace is considered unsafe since Russia invaded in 2022.
Putin said contacts with Ukraine were still taking place.
"It is difficult for me to say right now to what extent these contacts are leading to a peace agreement, given the statements we have heard recently from Ukraine's top leadership," he said.
"However, contacts do exist and are continuing on an ongoing basis - again, primarily through intelligence channels."
Overnight Russian drones tore into central Kyiv wounding 11 people and damaging residential and university buildings on the seventh day of nearly round-the-clock attacks that have upended daily life in Ukraine's capital.
Moscow's new air campaign against Kyiv and the surrounding region has killed dozens of civilians and disrupted logistics as the city struggles to shoot down the jet-powered drones that have swarmed the area in waves.
Wednesday's attack on a downtown university took place while students were in class, forcing some 160 to seek shelter, Zelenskiy said.
"Unfortunately, there has been far too little response from the world and its most influential leaders to this latest Russian escalation of strikes," he wrote on X.
The mounting attacks come with Ukraine already bracing for a new season of Russian strikes on energy infrastructure, amid a critical shortage of US-designed missile interceptors needed to down Moscow's ballistic missiles.
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