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Ex-leader Trump stated on Saturday that the Russian-prepared proposal for peace was "not my final offer", following fierce reaction from Ukrainian officials and commentators who likened it to a Munich pact of 1938 involving Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

During brief comments at the White House, Trump informed journalists: "We’d like to get to peace. This should have occurred earlier … we are attempting to conclude it, one way or the other it must be resolved."

Forthcoming Switzerland Talks Include Multiple Nations

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

Ahead of the talks, American lawmakers told media outlets that State Department head Marco Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Switzerland to clarify the details of this disclosed proposal. 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, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Faces Crucial Deadline

However, the former president has given Volodymyr Zelenskyy until Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. The document requires Ukraine to cede land under its control to Russia, downsize the size of its army, and surrender long-range weapons. Additionally, it excludes international peacekeepers and sanctions for Russian war crimes.

In a sombre speech last Friday, the Ukrainian leader cautioned that his country faces a difficult decision in the near future involving keeping the nation's honor and forfeiting key ally like the United States. He admitted that it faces one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukrainian Negotiating Team Formed for Upcoming Meetings

Speaking this weekend, the president said that real or "dignified" peace depends on "guaranteed security and justice". He revealed a negotiating team, established through a decree, which will meet American representatives in Switzerland, headed by top aide Andriy Yermak.

A additional delegate from Ukraine's team, former defence minister and security council official Umerov, said there would be discussions with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting limits, he noted: "Ukraine approaches this process with a clear understanding of its interests. This is another stage of the dialogue that has been ongoing in recent days and is primarily aimed at aligning our vision for the next steps."

Global Response and Criticism

The Ukrainian president has sought to engage constructively with the US administration seemingly determined to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has made clear he cannot give up Ukraine’s sovereignty or abandon a constitution that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.

At a meeting held in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council released a joint statement opposing the proposed deal, saying it requires "additional work". The statement indicated that EU and Nato members would need to be consulted regarding certain clauses, which rule out Kyiv’s Nato membership and impose terms on its future EU accession.

Citizen Opinion in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the proposal, drawn up by a Russian representative and a US delegate, have been largely negative. Commentators said it was a blueprint for further Russian aggression: targeting not just Ukraine but other European regions too.

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

In a Facebook post, he said he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. This offended people who had hidden in basements in affected cities – sites of civilian executions – and families of deported children to Russian territory. "A rather cynical agreement," he stated.

In an interview in a Kyiv subway station, Sariskyi, 21, said that Russia had been trying to dominate Ukraine over many years. It conceded "barely anything" in the proposed deal and continued to keep troops in Ukraine. In my view, this deal aims to undermine Ukraine and impose unfair terms, he said.

Should Ukraine accept the terms Kyiv would be forced to sacrifice its liberties, he added. If rejected, 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 remarked.

Diverse Perspectives from the Public

Another passenger, 19-year-old Barchan, said that the country would "keep strong" 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.

Speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna said she was grateful to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She suggested that the nation should be ready to give away Crimea and the eastern Donbas region for a limited time if it meant maintaining US support. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she said.

European Leaders Condemn the Proposal

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized this proposal. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin called it a catastrophe, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for "all of the democratic world". She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – "more aggression and conflicts" would follow.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Verhofstadt, quoted a statement by Churchill of an appeaser as "one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last". He continued: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. A critical juncture for the European Union."