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Ex-leader Trump stated on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted proposal for peace was not his ultimate proposal, after intense criticism from Ukrainian leaders and commentators that likened it to the Munich pact of 1938 between Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

In brief comments from the White House, Trump told reporters: "We’d like to get to peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we’re trying to get it ended, one way or the other it must be resolved."

Forthcoming Geneva Negotiations Involve Multiple Countries

Ukrainian and American delegates will meet in Switzerland this Sunday to discuss the plan. Defense representatives from Germany, France, and the UK are expected to join these negotiations there.

Ahead of the talks, US senators informed the press that Secretary of State Rubio reached out to them while en route to Geneva to clarify the details of the leaked plan. According to him, this plan did not originate from the administration but rather a "wish list of the Russians", according to independent Maine senator King, a member on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Faces Critical Time Limit

Nevertheless, Trump has given Zelenskyy until Thursday to sign this multi-point agreement. It calls on Ukraine to cede territory under its control to Moscow, reduce its military forces, and relinquish long-range weapons. Additionally, it rules out international peacekeepers and penalties for Russian war crimes.

In a sombre speech last Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that his country confronts an impossible choice in the near future between preserving its national dignity and losing key ally in the shape of the US. Zelenskyy acknowledged that it faces an extremely challenging period in its history.

Ukraine's Dialogue Delegation Appointed for Geneva Talks

In comments on Saturday, the president said that real or "dignified" peace depends on assured safety and fairness. He announced a negotiating team, established through a decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, headed by his chief of staff Andriy Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, former defence minister and security council official Umerov, said they will hold 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 is another stage of the dialogue that has been ongoing in recent days and is primarily aimed at aligning our vision for the next steps."

International Reaction and Concerns

The Ukrainian president has attempted 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 the nation's independence or abandon the constitutional framework that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.

At a meeting held in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council issued a joint statement pushing back on Trump’s plan, saying it needs further refinement. The statement indicated that members of the EU and NATO must be involved regarding certain clauses, which rule out Ukraine's NATO accession and impose terms on its European Union membership.

Public Opinion in Ukraine's Capital

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

Mustafa Nayyem, a public figure who led the 2014 Maidan protests, remarked it invited parallels with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. Trumps’s peace plan belonged to the same "recognisable genre", with the victim invited "to formulate his own defeat so everyone else can live easier".

On social media, Nayyem said his anger by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. This offended people who had hidden in basements in affected cities – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russian territory. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded.

Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Russia had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". The agreement offered "barely anything" in the proposed deal and maintained troops in Ukraine. "I think the deal is an attempt to break Ukraine and force unjust conditions on us," he remarked.

Should Ukraine accept the terms it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he added. If rejected, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a crucial source of military intelligence for Ukraine's forces. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he remarked.

Varied Viewpoints from the Public

A different commuter, teenager Barchan, said that the country would "keep strong" lacking US backing. We will continue our struggle as needed. Our territory will remain our territory, including Crimea and the east. They are Ukrainian land." She expressed that the president is intelligent and forecasted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

While speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna said she was grateful to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She said that the nation should be ready ceding certain regions temporarily if it meant maintaining US support. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she proposed.

European Officials Condemn the Plan

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized this proposal. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin described it as a catastrophe, affecting not just Ukraine but for democracies worldwide. 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, Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as someone who accommodates an aggressor. 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."