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Ex-leader Trump indicated this past weekend that his Russian-prepared peace plan constituted "not my final offer", following intense reaction from Ukraine's officials and commentators that compared it to a 1938 Munich agreement involving Neville Chamberlain and Hitler.

During short remarks from 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, in any case we have to get it ended."

Upcoming Geneva Negotiations Involve Multiple Countries

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

Prior to these discussions, US senators informed the press that State Department head Marco Rubio contacted them while en route to Geneva for clarification on the nature of the leaked plan. According to him, the proposal "was not the administration’s plan" but rather a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by Senator Angus King, a member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Faces Critical Time Limit

However, Trump has set Volodymyr Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing the 28-point document. The document requires Kyiv to give up land under its control to Moscow, reduce the size of its army, and relinquish advanced weaponry. Additionally, it rules out a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn address on Friday, the Ukrainian leader warned that his country confronts a difficult decision in the near future between preserving its national dignity and forfeiting key ally in the shape of the US. Zelenskyy acknowledged that Ukraine is experiencing an extremely challenging period in its history.

Ukrainian Dialogue Team Formed for Geneva Talks

Speaking this weekend, the president said that real or respectable resolution depends on assured safety and fairness. He announced a delegation, established by presidential decree, that would soon meet American representatives in Geneva, led by his chief of staff Yermak.

Another member of the Ukrainian delegation, former defence minister and national security council secretary Umerov, said there would be consultations with Washington regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

Hinting at red lines, Umerov noted: "Ukraine approaches this process with a clear understanding of its interests. This represents a continuation of recent discussions focused on harmonizing our plans for future actions."

Global Response and Criticism

Zelenskyy has sought 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 Ukraine’s sovereignty or disregard the constitutional framework that protects Ukraine's territorial integrity.

During a summit held in South Africa, G20 leaders and EU representatives released a collective declaration opposing Trump’s plan, saying it needs further refinement. It said that members of the EU and NATO must be involved on some of its provisions, that exclude Ukraine's NATO accession and impose terms on its European Union membership.

Citizen Views in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, prepared by a Russian representative and a US delegate, have been largely negative. Analysts said it outlined a plan for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but of other parts of Europe too.

Mustafa Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led the 2014 Maidan protests, said it invited parallels with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. Trumps’s peace plan came from a similar category, where the affected party is asked to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

In a Facebook post, Nayyem said his anger by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. This offended those who sought shelter in Bucha or Mariupol – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and families of deported children to Russia. A deeply cynical deal, he stated.

Speaking in a Kyiv subway station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Moscow had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". The agreement offered very little in the proposed deal and maintained its forces on Ukrainian soil. In my view, this deal aims to undermine Ukraine and impose unfair terms, he remarked.

Should Ukraine accept the terms it would be compelled to give up its freedoms, he said. If it didn’t, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a vital resource of battlefield information for Ukraine's forces. "There is no good way out of this for now," he remarked.

Diverse Perspectives from the Public

Another passenger, 19-year-old Sofia Barchan, asserted 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 Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not cede territory.

While speaking in the rain, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna said she was grateful to the former US leader for his attempts to broker peace. She said that Ukraine ought to consider to give away certain regions for a limited time if it ensured keeping America as a partner. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she said.

EU Leaders Condemn the Proposal

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized this proposal. Ex-PM of Finland Marin described it as a disaster, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for democracies worldwide. She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – 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 "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."