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Former President Donald Trump remarked on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted peace plan constituted not his ultimate proposal, following strong backlash from Ukraine's officials and commentators that likened it to a Munich pact of 1938 involving Neville Chamberlain and Hitler.

During brief comments at 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, in any case it must be resolved."

Forthcoming Switzerland Negotiations Include Multiple Nations

Ukrainian and American officials are scheduled to meet in Switzerland this Sunday to discuss this proposal. Security officials from France, Britain and Germany will also participate in these negotiations in Geneva.

Prior to the talks, American lawmakers told the press that Secretary of State Rubio contacted them during his travel to Geneva to clarify the details of the leaked plan. According to him, this plan did not originate from the administration but instead a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by independent Maine senator King, a member on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Confronts Critical Deadline

Nevertheless, the former president has set Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday to sign this multi-point agreement. It calls on Kyiv to cede territory under its control to Russia, downsize the size of its army, and relinquish advanced weaponry. Additionally, it excludes a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn speech on Friday, Zelenskyy warned that his country faces an impossible choice over the coming days between keeping the nation's honor and losing key ally in the shape of the US. Zelenskyy acknowledged that it faces one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukrainian Negotiating Team Formed for Geneva Talks

Speaking this weekend, Zelenskyy said that genuine or respectable peace depends on assured safety and fairness. He announced a negotiating team, appointed through a decree, which will meet American representatives in Geneva, headed by top aide Andriy Yermak.

Another member of the Ukrainian delegation, ex-defense head and security council official Umerov, said they will hold discussions with Washington regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

Hinting at red lines, Umerov 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."

Global Response and Criticism

Zelenskyy has attempted to participate positively with the US administration apparently intent to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has made clear that he will not surrender Ukraine’s sovereignty or abandon the constitutional framework that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.

During a summit in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and EU representatives issued a collective declaration pushing back on the proposed deal, saying it requires further refinement. It said that members of the EU and NATO must be involved on some of its provisions, which rule out Ukraine's NATO accession and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Citizen Opinion in Kyiv

Ukrainian reaction to the text, drawn up by Putin’s envoy and Trump’s representative, have been largely negative. Commentators argued it outlined a plan for further Russian aggression: not only of Ukraine but other European regions too.

Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, said it drew comparisons with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. Trumps’s peace plan came from a similar category, with the victim invited to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

On social media, he said he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. It was an insult 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 Russia. "A rather cynical agreement," he stated.

Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, 21, said that Russia has attempted to dominate Ukraine "for years". It conceded "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.

Should Ukraine accept the terms it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he added. If it didn’t, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a vital resource of battlefield information for frontline Ukrainian troops. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he noted.

Varied Viewpoints from the Public

A different commuter, teenager Sofia Barchan, asserted that Ukraine would "keep strong" lacking US backing. We will continue our struggle as needed. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. It belongs to Ukraine." She expressed Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not cede territory.

Speaking during rainfall, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Olena Ivanovna said she was grateful to the former US leader for his attempts to broker peace. She said that Ukraine ought to consider ceding certain regions temporarily if it meant keeping America as a partner. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she proposed.

EU Officials Criticize the Proposal

Former European heads of state have roundly condemned this proposal. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin described it as a disaster, affecting not just Ukraine but for democracies worldwide. She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – further hostilities would follow.

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 added: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."