In an interview with Time Magazine published on Thursday, Trump discussed policy shifts he plans to implement once he takes office on January 20.

The Republican was asked whether he would abandon Ukraine upon taking office, to which he replied: “I want to reach an [peace] agreement, and the only way you’re going to reach an agreement is not to abandon.”

Asked in the interview, carried out on November 25, whether he would cut U.S. military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine if Kyiv did not agree to his proposed peace deal, Trump said: “I think I have a very good plan to help, but when I start exposing that plan, it becomes almost a worthless plan.”

Trump told Time that the number of people dying in the conflict, especially in the last month, was “staggering,” adding: “I’m talking on both sides. It’s really an advantage to both sides to get this thing done.”

‘It’s crazy’

On Ukraine using U.S.-supplied missiles inside Russian territory, Trump said: “It’s crazy. I disagree very vehemently with sending missiles hundreds of miles into Russia. Why are we doing that? We’re just escalating this war and making it worse.

“That should not have been allowed to be done. Now they’re doing not only missiles, but they’re doing other types of weapons. And I think that’s a very big mistake.”

Last month, outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden gave Ukraine the green light to use American-supplied long-range ATACMS missiles to strike targets inside Russia.

Ukraine first used ATACMS missiles inside Russian territory on November 19, coinciding with the 1000th day of the war.

During his presidential campaign, Trump repeatedly criticized Biden’s administration for allocating billions of dollars to Ukraine and claimed, if elected, he could end the Ukraine war “within 24 hours.”

The Republican recently approved Keith Kellogg, a retired lieutenant general, to serve as his special envoy for the war in Ukraine.

Kellogg’s plan for ending the conflict, now approaching its third year, involves freezing the battle lines at their prevailing locations and forcing both Kyiv and Moscow to the negotiating table.