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Ex-leader Donald Trump indicated on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted proposal for peace was "not my final offer", following intense backlash from Ukraine's leaders and commentators that compared it to the Munich pact of 1938 involving Chamberlain and Hitler.

In short remarks at 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, in any case we have to get it ended."

Forthcoming Geneva Negotiations Include Various Nations

US and Ukrainian delegates are scheduled to meet in Geneva on Sunday for discussions on this proposal. Defense representatives from France, Britain and Germany will also participate in the talks there.

Ahead of the talks, American lawmakers informed media outlets that Secretary of State Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Switzerland for clarification on the nature of this disclosed proposal. According to him, this plan did not originate from the administration but rather reflected Russian desires, as reported by independent Maine senator Angus King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Faces Crucial Time Limit

Nevertheless, the former president has given Volodymyr Zelenskyy until Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. It calls on Ukraine to cede territory under its control to Russia, downsize its military forces, and relinquish advanced weaponry. Additionally, it excludes international peacekeepers and penalties for Russian war crimes.

During a solemn speech on Friday, the Ukrainian leader cautioned that his country confronts a difficult decision over the coming days involving preserving its national dignity and losing a major partner like the United States. He admitted that it faces an extremely challenging period historically.

Ukraine's Negotiating Delegation Formed for Upcoming Talks

Speaking on Saturday, Zelenskyy emphasized that real or "dignified" peace was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He announced a delegation, appointed by presidential decree, which will meet American representatives in Switzerland, headed by top aide Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, former defence minister and security council official Rustem Umerov, stated there would be discussions with the US regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

Suggesting red lines, Umerov added: Ukraine enters these talks with defined goals. This represents a continuation of recent discussions focused on harmonizing our plans for future actions."

International Reaction and Concerns

The Ukrainian president has attempted to engage constructively with the US administration apparently intent to resolve the war 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.

During a summit in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council issued a joint statement pushing back on Trump’s plan, stating it needs "additional work". The statement indicated that EU and Nato members must be involved regarding certain clauses, that exclude Kyiv’s Nato membership and impose terms on its future EU accession.

Citizen Opinion in Kyiv

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

Mustafa Nayyem, a public figure who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, said it drew comparisons with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. Trumps’s peace plan came from a similar category, with the victim invited "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. 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 Russia. A deeply cynical deal, he stated.

Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, a young adult, commented that Moscow had been trying to dominate Ukraine "for years". It conceded "barely anything" in the proposed deal and maintained troops in Ukraine. In my view, this deal aims to undermine Ukraine and impose unfair terms, he remarked.

If Zelenskyy signed off on the proposals it would be compelled to give up its freedoms, he said. If rejected, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a vital resource of battlefield information for frontline Ukrainian troops. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted.

Diverse Viewpoints from the Public

Another passenger, 19-year-old Barchan, asserted that Ukraine would remain resilient without American support. "We will fight for as long as it takes. Our territory will remain our territory, including Crimea and the east. They are Ukrainian land." She said Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

Speaking in the rain, near a historical monument, Ivanovna said she was grateful to Trump for his peace-making efforts. She suggested that the nation should be ready to give away certain regions for a limited time if it meant maintaining US support. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she said.

European Leaders Condemn the Plan

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 "all of the democratic world". She said if the west showed weakness and ignorance – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – further hostilities would follow.

Belgium's ex-PM, Guy Verhofstadt, referenced Churchill’s definition regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. 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."