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Former President Donald Trump remarked on Saturday that his Russian-prepared proposal for peace constituted "not my final offer", after intense criticism from Ukrainian leaders and analysts who likened it to the 1938 Munich agreement involving Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

During brief comments from the White House, the US president told journalists: "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."

Forthcoming Switzerland Talks Involve Multiple Countries

US and Ukrainian officials are scheduled to meet in Geneva on Sunday for discussions on this proposal. Security officials from Germany, France, and the UK will also participate in these negotiations there.

Ahead of the talks, American lawmakers told media outlets that State Department head Rubio reached out to them while en route to Switzerland to clarify the nature of the leaked plan. According to him, this plan did not originate from the administration but rather reflected Russian desires, according to independent Maine senator Angus King, a member on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Faces Crucial Time Limit

However, the former president has given Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. It calls on Kyiv to cede land under its control to Russia, reduce the size of its army, and surrender long-range weapons. Additionally, it rules out a European peacekeeping force and penalties for Russian war crimes.

During a solemn speech last Friday, Zelenskyy warned that Ukraine faces a difficult decision in the near future involving keeping the nation's honor and forfeiting key ally like the United States. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukraine's Negotiating Team Formed for Geneva Talks

Speaking on Saturday, the president said that genuine or respectable resolution depends on assured safety and fairness. He announced a delegation, appointed by presidential decree, that would soon meet American representatives in Switzerland, led by his chief of staff Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and national security council secretary Rustem Umerov, said they will hold discussions with the US "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting red lines, Umerov 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 Criticism

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 emphasized that he will not surrender Ukraine’s sovereignty or abandon a constitution that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.

At a meeting held in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council released a collective declaration opposing Trump’s plan, saying it needs "additional work". The statement indicated that members of the EU and NATO would need to be consulted on some of its provisions, that exclude Ukraine's NATO accession and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Citizen Opinion in Ukraine's Capital

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, drawn up by Putin’s envoy and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Commentators said it was a blueprint for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but other European regions as well.

Mustafa Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led the 2014 Maidan protests, said it invited parallels with the Munich Agreement. Trumps’s peace plan belonged to a similar category, where the affected party is asked to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

In a Facebook post, Nayyem said he was outraged by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. This offended those who sought shelter in affected cities – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and families of deported children to Russia. A deeply cynical deal, he stated.

Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, 21, commented that Russia had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially over many years. The agreement offered "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and continued to keep its forces on Ukrainian soil. In my view, this deal aims to undermine Ukraine and impose unfair terms, he said.

If Zelenskyy signed off on the proposals it would be compelled to give up its freedoms, he added. If it didn’t, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a crucial source of battlefield information for frontline Ukrainian troops. "There is no good way out of this for now," he remarked.

Varied Viewpoints from Ukrainian Citizens

A different commuter, teenager Sofia Barchan, asserted that the country would remain resilient lacking US backing. We will continue our struggle as needed. Our territory will remain our territory, including Crimea and the east. It belongs to Ukraine." She said that the president is intelligent and forecasted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

While speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Ivanovna mentioned she was grateful to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. 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 Officials Criticize the Proposal

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized this proposal. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin called it a catastrophe, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for "all of the democratic world". She said if the west showed weakness and ignorance – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – "more aggression and conflicts" could arise.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Guy Verhofstadt, referenced Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as "one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last". He continued: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."