President Joe Biden outlined his vision for ending the war in Ukraine, which does not involve the country joining NATO, TIME magazine reports.

In the interview, Biden said: “Peace looks like making sure Russia never, never, never, never occupies Ukraine.”

“This is what peace looks like. And it doesn’t mean that they are part of NATO,” the US president said.

While Biden has rallied allies to support Ukraine militarily and economically, he acknowledged that last year’s Ukrainian counteroffensive failed, and Russia has recently made gains.

“It’s not a decisive stance,” a senior Ukrainian official told TIME. “It’s not the way to victory.”

However, Biden said, “If we ever let Ukraine go down, mark my words, you’ll see Poland go, and you’ll see all those nations along the actual border of Russia [fall].”

According to the report, he believes deterring Russia is part of a broader strategy to strengthen alliances and maintain American global leadership.

Despite the ongoing war, Biden touted his success in adding Finland and Sweden to NATO, stating: “Everybody thought, including you guys, thought I was crazy. Guess what? I did it.”

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