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Former President Donald Trump stated on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted proposal for peace was "not my final offer", after fierce criticism from Ukrainian officials and analysts that likened it to the 1938 Munich agreement involving Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

During short remarks from the White House, Trump told reporters: Our goal is to achieve peace. This should have occurred earlier … we’re trying to get it ended, one way or the other we have to get it ended."

Forthcoming Switzerland Negotiations Include Multiple Nations

Ukrainian and American officials will meet in Switzerland on Sunday to discuss this proposal. Defense representatives from Germany, France, and the UK are expected to join these negotiations in Geneva.

Prior to the talks, American lawmakers informed the press that State Department head Rubio contacted them during his travel to Switzerland to clarify the nature of the leaked plan. He said, the proposal did not originate from the administration but instead reflected Russian desires, as reported by independent Maine senator Angus King, who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Faces Critical Deadline

However, the former president has given Zelenskyy until Thursday to sign the 28-point document. The document requires Ukraine to cede territory under its control to Russia, downsize the size of its army, and surrender long-range weapons. It also rules out international peacekeepers and penalties for Russian war crimes.

During a solemn speech last Friday, the Ukrainian leader warned that Ukraine confronts an impossible choice in the near future between keeping its national dignity and losing a major partner in the shape of the US. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing an extremely challenging period in its history.

Ukraine's Negotiating Delegation Formed for Upcoming Meetings

Speaking on Saturday, the president emphasized that real or respectable peace was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He announced a negotiating team, appointed through a decree, that would soon meet American representatives in Geneva, headed by his chief of staff Yermak.

Another member of the Ukrainian delegation, former defence minister and security council official Rustem Umerov, stated they will hold consultations with the US "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting red lines, he added: 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 sought to participate positively with the US administration seemingly determined to resolve the war on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has made clear he cannot give up the nation's independence or disregard the constitutional framework that protects the country’s current borders.

At a meeting in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and EU representatives issued a collective declaration opposing Trump’s plan, stating it needs further refinement. The statement indicated that members of the EU and NATO must be involved regarding certain clauses, which rule out Kyiv’s Nato membership and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Citizen Views in Ukraine's Capital

Ukrainian reaction to the text, prepared by Putin’s envoy and a US delegate, have been largely negative. Commentators argued it was a blueprint for further Russian aggression: not only of Ukraine but other European regions too.

Mustafa Nayyem, a public figure who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, said it invited parallels with the Munich Agreement. 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".

In a Facebook post, Nayyem expressed he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. It was an insult those who sought shelter in Bucha or Mariupol – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and families of deported children to Russian territory. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded.

Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, commented that Moscow has attempted to dominate Ukraine "for years". The agreement offered very little in the Trump agreement and maintained troops in Ukraine. "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 Kyiv would be forced to sacrifice its liberties, he added. If it didn’t, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a crucial source of battlefield information for frontline Ukrainian troops. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted.

Varied Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens

Another passenger, 19-year-old Sofia Barchan, asserted that the country would remain resilient lacking US backing. "We will fight for as long as it takes. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. It belongs to Ukraine." She said Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not cede territory.

While speaking in the rain, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna mentioned her appreciation to the former US leader for his peace-making efforts. She suggested that Ukraine should be ready ceding certain regions temporarily if it ensured keeping America as a partner. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she proposed.

European Leaders Condemn the Proposal

Former European heads of state have roundly condemned this proposal. Finland’s former prime minister Marin described it as a catastrophe, affecting not just Ukraine but for democracies worldwide. She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – further hostilities could arise.

Belgium's ex-PM, Guy Verhofstadt, referenced a statement by Churchill regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He added: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."