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Former President Donald Trump remarked on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted peace plan was "not my final offer", following strong criticism from Ukraine's leaders and analysts that likened it to a Munich pact of 1938 involving Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

During short remarks from the White House, the US president told reporters: Our goal is to achieve peace. This should have occurred earlier … we are attempting to conclude it, one way or the other we have to get it ended."

Upcoming Switzerland Negotiations Include Multiple Countries

US and Ukrainian delegates will meet in Geneva this Sunday to discuss the plan. Defense representatives from France, Britain and Germany will also participate in the talks in Geneva.

Prior to the talks, US senators told media outlets that Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Geneva to clarify the nature of the leaked plan. According to him, this plan "was not the administration’s plan" but rather a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by independent Maine senator Angus King, a member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Confronts Crucial Deadline

Nevertheless, Trump has given Zelenskyy until Thursday to sign the 28-point document. It calls on Ukraine to cede territory it currently controls to Moscow, reduce its military forces, and relinquish advanced weaponry. Additionally, it rules out international peacekeepers and penalties for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn address on Friday, Zelenskyy warned that his country confronts an impossible choice in the near future involving preserving the nation's honor and losing a major partner like the United States. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing an extremely challenging period in its history.

Ukraine's Dialogue Delegation Appointed for Upcoming Talks

Speaking this weekend, the president emphasized that genuine or respectable peace was always based on assured safety and fairness. He revealed a delegation, established through a decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, led by top aide Yermak.

Another member of the Ukrainian delegation, ex-defense head and national security council secretary Rustem Umerov, stated there would be consultations with Washington regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

Suggesting red lines, he added: "Ukraine approaches this process with a clear understanding of its interests. This represents a continuation of recent discussions focused on harmonizing our plans for future actions."

Global Reaction and Concerns

Zelenskyy has attempted to participate positively with a White House seemingly determined to resolve the war on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has made clear he cannot give up the nation's independence or disregard the constitutional framework that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.

At a meeting held in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council released a joint statement pushing back on the proposed deal, stating it needs "additional work". It said that members of the EU and NATO would need to be consulted regarding certain clauses, which rule out Ukraine's NATO accession and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Public Views in Ukraine's Capital

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

Mustafa Nayyem, a public figure involved in Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, remarked it invited parallels with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. The proposal belonged to the same "recognisable genre", where the affected party is asked to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

On social media, Nayyem expressed he was outraged by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. This offended those who sought shelter in Bucha or Mariupol – sites of civilian executions – and families of deported children to Russian territory. A deeply cynical deal, he concluded.

In an interview in a Kyiv subway station, Sariskyi, 21, said that Russia had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". It conceded "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and maintained its forces on Ukrainian soil. In my view, this deal aims to undermine Ukraine and impose unfair terms, he remarked.

Should Ukraine accept the terms it would be compelled to give up its freedoms, he added. If it didn’t, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a crucial source of battlefield information for frontline Ukrainian troops. "There is no good way out of this for now," he remarked.

Diverse Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens

A different commuter, teenager Sofia Barchan, said that the country would remain resilient without American support. We will continue our struggle as needed. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. They are Ukrainian land." She said Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

Speaking in the rain, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Ivanovna mentioned she was grateful to the former US leader for his attempts to broker peace. She suggested that the nation ought to consider ceding certain regions for a limited time if it ensured maintaining US support. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she proposed.

EU Officials Criticize the Proposal

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized this proposal. Ex-PM of Finland Marin described it as a catastrophe, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for democracies worldwide. She said if the west showed weakness and ignorance – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – further hostilities would follow.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition regarding appeasement as "one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last". He added: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."