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Ex-leader Trump indicated on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted peace plan constituted not his ultimate proposal, following intense reaction from Ukraine's leaders and commentators that likened it to a 1938 Munich agreement involving Chamberlain and Hitler.

In short comments at the White House, the US president informed reporters: Our goal is to achieve peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we are attempting to conclude it, in any case we have to get it ended."

Upcoming Geneva Negotiations Involve Various Nations

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

Prior to these discussions, American lawmakers informed the press that State Department head Marco Rubio reached out to them while en route to Switzerland for clarification on the details of the leaked plan. According to him, the proposal did not originate from the administration but rather reflected Russian desires, according to Senator Angus King, a member on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Confronts Crucial Time Limit

However, the former president has given Volodymyr Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. It calls on Kyiv to give up land it currently controls to Russia, downsize its military forces, and surrender long-range weapons. Additionally, it excludes international peacekeepers and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn address last Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that his country confronts a difficult decision over the coming days involving keeping the nation's honor and forfeiting key ally like the United States. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukrainian Dialogue Delegation Appointed for Upcoming Talks

Speaking this weekend, the president emphasized that genuine or "dignified" peace depends on "guaranteed security and justice". He announced a negotiating team, appointed by presidential decree, which will meet American representatives in Switzerland, headed by top aide Yermak.

Another member of the Ukrainian delegation, former defence minister and national security council secretary Rustem Umerov, said they will hold consultations with the US "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Hinting at limits, Umerov noted: Ukraine enters these talks with defined goals. This represents a continuation of recent discussions focused on harmonizing our plans for future actions."

International Response and Concerns

The Ukrainian president has attempted to participate positively with a White House apparently intent to resolve the war based on Russian conditions. He has made clear he cannot give up Ukraine’s sovereignty or abandon the constitutional framework that protects the country’s current borders.

During a summit in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council released a joint statement pushing back on Trump’s plan, saying it requires further refinement. It said that EU and Nato members would need to be consulted on some of its provisions, that exclude Kyiv’s Nato membership and impose terms on its European Union membership.

Public Opinion in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, prepared by a Russian representative and Trump’s representative, have been largely negative. Commentators said it was a blueprint for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but of other parts of Europe too.

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 the same "recognisable genre", with the victim invited "to formulate his own defeat so everyone else can live easier".

In a Facebook post, he said his anger by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. It was an insult people who had hidden in basements in Bucha or Mariupol – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and families of deported children to Russian territory. A deeply cynical deal, he concluded.

In an interview in a Kyiv subway station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, commented that Moscow has attempted to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". It conceded "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and maintained its forces on Ukrainian soil. "I think the deal is an attempt to break Ukraine and force unjust conditions on us," he said.

Should Ukraine accept the terms it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he said. If it didn’t, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a crucial source of military intelligence for Ukraine's forces. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted.

Varied Viewpoints from the Public

Another passenger, 19-year-old Sofia Barchan, said that the country 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. It belongs to Ukraine." She said that the president is intelligent and predicted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

While speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna said her appreciation to the former US leader for his peace-making efforts. She said that Ukraine ought to consider ceding certain regions for a limited time if it meant maintaining US support. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she said.

EU Officials Condemn the Proposal

Previous European leaders have strongly criticized this proposal. Finland’s former prime minister Marin called it a disaster, affecting not just Ukraine but for "all of the democratic world". She said if the west showed weakness and ignorance – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – further hostilities 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 continued: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. A critical juncture for the European Union."