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Former President Donald Trump remarked on Saturday that his Russian-prepared proposal for peace was "not my final offer", after strong criticism from Ukraine's leaders and commentators that compared it to a Munich pact of 1938 between Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

During short remarks from the White House, the US president informed reporters: "We’d like to get to peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we are attempting to conclude it, one way or the other we have to get it ended."

Upcoming Geneva Negotiations Include Multiple Countries

Ukrainian and American delegates are scheduled to meet in Switzerland this Sunday to discuss this proposal. Security officials from Germany, France, and the UK are expected to join the talks there.

Ahead of these discussions, US senators told media outlets that Secretary of State Marco Rubio contacted them while en route to Geneva for clarification on the details of this disclosed proposal. According to him, this plan "was not the administration’s plan" but rather a "wish list of the Russians", according to Senator King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Faces Critical Deadline

Nevertheless, the former president has given Volodymyr Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday to sign this multi-point agreement. It calls on Ukraine to give up territory it currently controls to Moscow, reduce its military forces, and relinquish advanced weaponry. It also rules out a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

In a sombre address last Friday, Zelenskyy warned that his country confronts an impossible choice over the coming days between preserving its national dignity and forfeiting key ally like the United States. Zelenskyy acknowledged that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments historically.

Ukrainian Dialogue Team Formed for Geneva Meetings

Speaking this weekend, Zelenskyy emphasized that genuine or respectable peace depends on "guaranteed security and justice". He announced a negotiating team, established through a decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, led by top aide Andriy Yermak.

A additional delegate of the Ukrainian delegation, ex-defense head and national security council secretary Rustem Umerov, said there would be discussions with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting red lines, Umerov noted: Ukraine enters these talks with defined goals. This represents a continuation of recent discussions focused on harmonizing our plans for future actions."

Global Reaction and Concerns

Zelenskyy has sought to engage constructively with a White House seemingly determined to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has emphasized that he will not surrender Ukraine’s sovereignty or disregard a constitution that enshrines the country’s current borders.

At a meeting in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and EU representatives issued a joint statement pushing back on Trump’s plan, saying it requires "additional work". It said that EU and Nato members must be involved on some of its provisions, which rule out Kyiv’s Nato membership and put conditions on its future EU accession.

Public Views in Kyiv

Ukrainian reaction to the text, prepared by Putin’s envoy and a US delegate, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts argued it was a blueprint for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but of other parts of Europe as well.

Mustafa Nayyem, a public figure who led the 2014 Maidan protests, said it drew comparisons with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. The proposal belonged to the same "recognisable genre", with the victim invited to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

On social media, Nayyem said he was outraged by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. It was an insult those who sought shelter in Bucha or Mariupol – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and families of deported children to Russia. "A rather cynical agreement," he stated.

In an interview in a Kyiv subway station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Moscow has attempted to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". The agreement offered "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and continued to keep troops in Ukraine. "I think the deal is an attempt to break Ukraine and force unjust conditions on us," he remarked.

If Zelenskyy signed off on the proposals it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he added. If it didn’t, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a crucial source of military intelligence for Ukraine's forces. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted.

Diverse Viewpoints from the Public

Another passenger, 19-year-old Barchan, said that the country would remain resilient without American support. "We will fight for as long as it takes. Our territory will remain our territory, including Crimea and the east. It belongs to Ukraine." She expressed that the president is intelligent and predicted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

Speaking during rainfall, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Olena Ivanovna mentioned her appreciation to the former US leader for his peace-making efforts. She said that the nation ought to consider ceding certain regions temporarily if it meant keeping America as a partner. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she proposed.

European Leaders Condemn the Proposal

Former European heads of state have roundly condemned this proposal. Ex-PM of Finland Sanna Marin described it as a catastrophe, affecting not just Ukraine but for "all of the democratic world". She said if Western nations display vulnerability – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – "more aggression and conflicts" could arise.

Belgium's ex-PM, Verhofstadt, quoted a statement by Churchill regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He added: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. A critical juncture for the European Union."