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Former President Trump indicated this past weekend that the Russian-prepared proposal for peace was "not my final offer", after intense reaction from Ukrainian leaders and analysts who compared it to a 1938 Munich agreement between Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

In short comments from the White House, Trump informed journalists: "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 Involve Various Nations

US and Ukrainian officials will meet in Switzerland on Sunday for discussions on the plan. Defense representatives from France, Britain and Germany will also participate in these negotiations there.

Prior to the talks, American lawmakers informed media outlets that State Department head Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Geneva to clarify the details of this disclosed proposal. He said, the proposal "was not the administration’s plan" but rather a "wish list of the Russians", according to Senator King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Confronts Critical Deadline

Nevertheless, the former president has given Volodymyr Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday to sign this multi-point agreement. The document requires Ukraine to give up land it currently controls to Russia, downsize the size of its army, and surrender long-range weapons. It also rules out a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn speech last Friday, the Ukrainian leader warned that Ukraine confronts a difficult decision over the coming days involving preserving its national dignity and losing key ally in the shape of the US. Zelenskyy acknowledged that Ukraine is experiencing an extremely challenging period historically.

Ukrainian Negotiating Delegation Formed for Upcoming Talks

Speaking on Saturday, Zelenskyy said that genuine or "dignified" resolution was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He announced a negotiating team, established through a decree, which will meet American representatives in Switzerland, headed by top aide Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and national security council secretary Rustem Umerov, stated there would be consultations with Washington regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

Suggesting limits, Umerov added: "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

The Ukrainian president has sought to participate positively with the US administration seemingly determined to resolve the war based on Russian conditions. He has emphasized he cannot give up the nation's independence or abandon the constitutional framework that protects the country’s current borders.

At a meeting in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council issued a collective declaration opposing Trump’s plan, stating it requires "additional work". It said that EU and Nato members would need to be consulted regarding certain clauses, that exclude Kyiv’s Nato membership and put conditions on its future EU accession.

Citizen Opinion in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the proposal, prepared by a Russian representative and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts said it was a blueprint for another Russian invasion: not only of Ukraine but other European regions too.

Mustafa Nayyem, a public figure who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, remarked it invited parallels with the Munich Agreement. Trumps’s peace plan belonged to the same "recognisable genre", where the affected party is asked to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

On social media, Nayyem expressed he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. It was an insult people who had hidden in basements in Bucha or Mariupol – sites of civilian executions – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russian territory. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded.

In an interview in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, 21, said that Moscow had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". The agreement offered "barely anything" in the proposed deal and maintained its forces on Ukrainian soil. "I think the deal is an attempt to break Ukraine and force unjust conditions on us," he remarked.

If Zelenskyy signed off on the proposals it would be compelled to give up its freedoms, he added. If it didn’t, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a crucial source of battlefield information for frontline Ukrainian troops. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he remarked.

Varied Perspectives from the Public

Another passenger, 19-year-old Barchan, asserted that Ukraine would "keep strong" without American support. "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 predicted he would not cede territory.

While speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna said her appreciation to the former US leader for his peace-making efforts. She suggested that Ukraine should be ready ceding Crimea and the eastern Donbas region for a limited time if it meant keeping America as a partner. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she said.

European Leaders Condemn the Plan

Previous European leaders have strongly criticized this proposal. Ex-PM of Finland Marin described it as a catastrophe, affecting not just Ukraine but for democracies worldwide. She warned if the west showed weakness and ignorance – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – further hostilities could arise.

Belgium's ex-PM, Guy Verhofstadt, referenced Churchill’s definition regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He added: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. A critical juncture for the European Union."