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Ex-leader Donald Trump remarked this past weekend that his Russian-prepared peace plan constituted "not my final offer", following intense criticism from Ukraine's officials and analysts who likened it to a 1938 Munich agreement involving Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

In brief remarks from the White House, the US president told journalists: 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 Involve Multiple Countries

US and Ukrainian delegates are scheduled to meet in Geneva on Sunday for discussions on this proposal. Security officials from France, Britain and Germany are expected to join these negotiations in Geneva.

Ahead of these discussions, US senators told the press that Secretary of State Marco Rubio contacted them while en route to Switzerland for clarification on the details of the leaked plan. According to him, the proposal "was not the administration’s plan" but instead a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by independent Maine senator Angus King, who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Confronts Critical Time Limit

However, the former president has set Volodymyr Zelenskyy until Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. The document requires Ukraine to give up territory under its control to Moscow, reduce the size of its army, and relinquish long-range weapons. Additionally, it rules out a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for Russian war crimes.

In a sombre speech on Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that Ukraine confronts an impossible choice over the coming days between preserving the nation's honor and losing a major partner like the United States. He admitted that it faces an extremely challenging period historically.

Ukraine's Dialogue Delegation Appointed for Upcoming Meetings

Speaking on Saturday, the president emphasized that real or respectable peace was always based on assured safety and fairness. He announced a delegation, appointed by presidential decree, which will meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, led by top aide Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and security council official Umerov, said there would be discussions with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Hinting at limits, he 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 Concerns

Zelenskyy has sought to participate positively with the US administration seemingly determined to resolve the war based on Russian conditions. He has made clear he cannot give up the nation's independence or abandon a constitution that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.

During a summit held in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council released a joint statement opposing Trump’s plan, saying it requires "additional work". The statement indicated 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 future EU accession.

Public Views in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the proposal, prepared by a Russian representative and a US delegate, have been largely negative. Commentators argued it was a blueprint for further Russian aggression: targeting not just Ukraine but of other parts of Europe as well.

Mustafa Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, said it drew comparisons with the Munich Agreement. The proposal came from a similar category, where the affected party is asked "to formulate his own defeat so everyone else can live easier".

On social media, he expressed his anger by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. 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 rather cynical agreement," he stated.

Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Russia had been trying to dominate Ukraine over many years. The agreement offered "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and maintained troops in Ukraine. In my view, this deal aims to undermine Ukraine and impose unfair terms, he remarked.

Should Ukraine accept the terms Kyiv would be forced 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 military intelligence for Ukraine's forces. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted.

Varied Perspectives from the Public

A different commuter, teenager Sofia Barchan, asserted that the country would remain resilient without American support. We will continue our struggle as needed. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. They are Ukrainian land." She said that the president is intelligent and predicted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

While speaking in the rain, near a historical monument, Ivanovna mentioned her appreciation to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She suggested that the nation should be ready ceding Crimea and the eastern Donbas region temporarily if it ensured maintaining US support. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she proposed.

EU Leaders Condemn the Plan

Previous European leaders have strongly criticized the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Marin called it a catastrophe, affecting not just Ukraine but for "all of the democratic world". She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – further hostilities could arise.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Guy Verhofstadt, referenced Churchill’s definition regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He continued: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."