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As far as I know, the word "girlfriend" in Russian is ambiguous. As well as the word for "female friend".

If I say ты хорошая подруга am I telling just "you're a good friend" with no ambiguity?

If I say я хочу, чтобы ты стала моей подругой is it evident that I am telling "I want you to become my girlfriend"?

Being a man, does the usage of the word подруга imply a connotation with "girlfriend"?

if I just want to tell "friend", the word друг works for both genders, right? If I say ты хороший друг it can mean "you're a good [female] friend", right?

swrutra
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    related questions: girlfriend подруга – Eugene Jun 21 '18 at 10:13
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    That's right. The answer to all your questions is yes. – user31264 Jun 21 '18 at 10:22
  • я хочу, чтобы ты стала моей подругой - implies a "relationship upgrade", and due to this implies some romantic interest (even if technically going from aliens to friends is a huge upgrade even in asexual ways). Then "я женатый человек, но у меня есть десяток подруг" would more often NOT imply romantic interest, would more often be about "my wife trust me to have female friends, and I do not abuse that trust". So there is clear connotation with "can there be a friendship between male and female?" stereotypical question. There is a POSSIBILITY of romantic interest conveyed. – Arioch Jun 22 '18 at 10:26
  • However this possibility might be conveyed not only in positive terms (the former example might be interpreted "let's explore if we can become friends and even more than just friends") but in negative too (the latter example usually would mean "i have female friends and I could have tried to jump into their bed, but I do not do it and my wife knows it". Though at times it might in some macho context means "my wife is not a reason enough to prohibit me womanizing around") – Arioch Jun 22 '18 at 10:29

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While your first question definitely can be answered as "yes, there isn't any ambiguity", I think some people would disagree on the second one as, just like the English word can be interpreted differently (for example, if spelled differently, i. e. "girlfriend" and "girl friend", though I am not sure if the latter is used commonly), the Russian one can, too.

Я хочу, чтобы ты стала моей подругой is a slightly ambiguous sentence, if you ask me. It might carry both meanings of "I want you to become my friend" and "I want you to become my girlfriend". If you want to express "I want you to become my girlfriend" clearly and without ambiguity, then you could use Я хочу, чтобы ты стала моей девушкой, since, as the related questions linked in the comments suggest, девушка has stronger romantic connotations.

And yes - друг will quite clearly state lack of romantic interest, and can be used for both male and female friends in that regard.

Ivan T.
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