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Former President Trump remarked on Saturday that the Russian-prepared peace plan was "not my final offer", following fierce criticism from Ukraine's officials and commentators who compared it to the 1938 Munich agreement between Chamberlain and Hitler.

In short remarks at the White House, Trump told reporters: Our goal is to achieve peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we’re trying to get it ended, one way or the other we have to get it ended."

Upcoming Geneva Talks Include Multiple Countries

Ukrainian and American officials are scheduled to meet in Switzerland this Sunday for discussions on the plan. Security officials from France, Britain and Germany are expected to join these negotiations in Geneva.

Prior to these discussions, American lawmakers informed the press that Secretary of State Marco Rubio contacted them during his travel to Geneva for clarification on the nature of this disclosed proposal. He said, this plan "was not the administration’s plan" but rather reflected Russian desires, according to independent Maine senator Angus King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Confronts Critical Time Limit

However, Trump has given 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 the size of its army, and surrender advanced weaponry. It also rules out a European peacekeeping force and penalties for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn speech last Friday, the Ukrainian leader warned that his country confronts an impossible choice in the near future involving keeping its national dignity and forfeiting a major partner like the United States. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments historically.

Ukrainian Dialogue Delegation Appointed for Upcoming Meetings

Speaking this weekend, Zelenskyy said that genuine or respectable resolution was always based on assured safety and fairness. He announced a negotiating team, established through a decree, which will meet its US counterparts in Geneva, headed by top aide Yermak.

A additional delegate from Ukraine's team, former defence minister and national security council secretary Umerov, said there would be consultations with the US regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

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

Global Response and Criticism

The Ukrainian president has attempted to participate positively with the US administration seemingly determined to end the conflict on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has made clear he cannot give up the nation's independence or abandon the constitutional framework that protects the country’s current borders.

At a meeting in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council released a collective declaration pushing back on Trump’s plan, stating it needs "additional work". It said that EU and Nato members must be involved regarding certain clauses, which rule out Ukraine's NATO accession and put conditions on its future EU accession.

Citizen Opinion in Kyiv

Ukrainian reaction to the proposal, drawn up by a Russian representative and a US delegate, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts said it was a blueprint for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but other European regions too.

Mustafa Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led the 2014 Maidan protests, said it drew comparisons with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. Trumps’s peace plan belonged to the same "recognisable genre", where the affected party is asked "to formulate his own defeat so everyone else can live easier".

On social media, Nayyem expressed his anger by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. It was an insult those who sought shelter in Bucha or Mariupol – sites of civilian executions – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russia. A deeply cynical deal, he concluded.

In an interview in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, 21, said that Moscow 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. "I think the deal is an attempt to break Ukraine and force unjust conditions on us," he said.

If Zelenskyy signed off on the proposals it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he added. If rejected, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a crucial source of battlefield information for Ukraine's forces. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted.

Varied Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens

A different commuter, teenager Barchan, said that Ukraine 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. They are Ukrainian land." She expressed Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and predicted he would not cede territory.

While speaking in the rain, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Olena Ivanovna said her appreciation to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She said that Ukraine ought to consider to give away Crimea and the eastern Donbas region for a limited time if it meant keeping America as a partner. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she said.

EU Leaders Condemn the Proposal

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Marin described it as a disaster, affecting not just Ukraine but for "all of the democratic world". She warned 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, Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He continued: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."