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Ex-leader Donald Trump stated on Saturday that the Russian-prepared peace plan constituted not his ultimate proposal, after intense backlash from Ukrainian leaders and commentators that compared it to a Munich pact of 1938 between Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

In brief comments at the White House, the US president told reporters: "We’d like to get to peace. This should have occurred earlier … we are attempting to conclude it, in any case it must be resolved."

Forthcoming Geneva Negotiations Include Various Countries

Ukrainian and American officials are scheduled to meet in Switzerland this Sunday for discussions on this proposal. Security officials from France, Britain and Germany will also participate in the talks in Geneva.

Prior to the talks, US senators told the press that State Department head Marco 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 rather a "wish list of the Russians", according to independent Maine senator Angus King, a member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Faces Critical Deadline

Nevertheless, Trump has given Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. The document requires Ukraine to give up land it currently controls to Russia, reduce the size of its army, and relinquish long-range weapons. 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 confronts a difficult decision over the coming days between preserving the nation's honor and forfeiting key ally in the shape of the US. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukraine's Negotiating Delegation Formed for Upcoming Meetings

In comments this weekend, Zelenskyy emphasized that genuine or "dignified" resolution was always based on assured safety and fairness. He revealed a negotiating team, appointed by presidential decree, which will meet American representatives in Geneva, led by top aide Yermak.

A additional delegate from Ukraine's team, former defence minister and security council official Rustem Umerov, stated they will hold discussions with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Hinting at 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."

International Response and Concerns

Zelenskyy has attempted to engage constructively with the US administration seemingly determined to resolve the war based on Russian conditions. He has made clear that he will not surrender the nation's independence or abandon a constitution that protects Ukraine's territorial integrity.

At a meeting in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council issued a joint statement pushing back on the proposed deal, stating it requires "additional work". The statement indicated that members of the EU and NATO must be involved regarding certain clauses, that exclude Ukraine's NATO accession and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Public Views in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, prepared by a Russian representative and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts said it was a blueprint for further Russian aggression: 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 the Munich Agreement. Trumps’s peace plan came from 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 its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. It was an insult people who had hidden in basements in Bucha or Mariupol – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russian territory. A deeply cynical deal, he concluded.

Speaking in a Kyiv subway station, Sariskyi, 21, said that Russia had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". The agreement offered "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and continued to keep troops in Ukraine. In my view, this deal aims to undermine Ukraine and impose unfair terms, he remarked.

If Zelenskyy signed off on the proposals it would be compelled to give up its freedoms, he said. If it didn’t, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a vital resource of battlefield information for Ukraine's forces. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he noted.

Varied Viewpoints from the Public

Another passenger, teenager Sofia Barchan, asserted that Ukraine would remain resilient lacking US backing. "We will fight for as long as it takes. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. They are Ukrainian land." She expressed that the president is intelligent and forecasted he would not cede territory.

Speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Ivanovna said her appreciation to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She said that Ukraine should be ready to give away certain regions temporarily if it meant maintaining US support. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she said.

EU Officials Criticize the Proposal

Previous European leaders have roundly condemned the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Marin described it as a catastrophe, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for democracies worldwide. She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – further hostilities could arise.

Belgium's ex-PM, Verhofstadt, referenced a statement by Churchill of an appeaser 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. A critical juncture for the European Union."