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Ex-leader Donald Trump indicated on Saturday that the Russian-prepared peace plan was not his ultimate proposal, following intense backlash from Ukraine's officials and analysts who compared it to the Munich pact of 1938 involving Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

In brief comments at the White House, the US president told 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."

Upcoming Switzerland Negotiations Involve Multiple Nations

US and Ukrainian officials will meet in Geneva on Sunday for discussions on the plan. Security officials from Germany, France, and the UK will also participate in these negotiations in Geneva.

Prior to these discussions, American lawmakers told media outlets that Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Geneva to clarify the nature of the leaked plan. He said, this plan "was not the administration’s plan" but rather a "wish list of the Russians", according to independent Maine senator King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Faces Critical Time Limit

Nevertheless, Trump has set Zelenskyy until Thursday to sign the 28-point document. The document requires Ukraine to cede territory it currently controls to Russia, downsize the size of its army, and relinquish advanced weaponry. Additionally, it rules out a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

In a sombre speech on Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that his country confronts a difficult decision over the coming days involving keeping the nation's honor and losing a major partner in the shape of the US. He admitted that it faces an extremely challenging period historically.

Ukrainian Dialogue Team Formed for Geneva Meetings

Speaking this weekend, the president emphasized that real or "dignified" peace was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He revealed a negotiating team, appointed by presidential decree, which will meet American representatives in Geneva, led by his chief of staff Andriy Yermak.

A additional delegate of the Ukrainian delegation, former defence minister and national security council secretary Umerov, stated there would be discussions with the US "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting red lines, he noted: 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

Zelenskyy has sought to participate positively with the US administration apparently intent to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has made clear that he will not surrender Ukraine’s sovereignty or disregard a constitution 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 the proposed deal, stating it needs "additional work". The statement indicated that members of the EU and NATO must be involved regarding certain clauses, that exclude Ukraine's NATO accession and impose terms on its future EU accession.

Citizen Views in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the proposal, prepared by a Russian representative and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts argued it was a blueprint for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but other European regions as well.

Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, said it invited parallels with the Munich Agreement. Trumps’s peace plan came from the same "recognisable genre", with the victim invited to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

On social media, he said he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. This offended those who sought shelter in Bucha or Mariupol – sites of civilian executions – and families of deported children to Russia. A deeply cynical deal, he concluded.

Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Russia has attempted to dominate Ukraine "for years". The agreement offered "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.

If Zelenskyy signed off on the proposals Kyiv would be forced to sacrifice its liberties, he added. If rejected, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a crucial source of military intelligence for frontline Ukrainian troops. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted.

Diverse Viewpoints from the Public

A different commuter, teenager 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 expressed that the president is intelligent and predicted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

Speaking in the rain, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna said her appreciation to the former US leader for his peace-making efforts. She suggested that Ukraine ought to consider to give away Crimea and the eastern Donbas region temporarily if it ensured maintaining US support. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she proposed.

European Leaders Criticize the Plan

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin described it as a catastrophe, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for "all of the democratic world". She warned if the west showed weakness and ignorance – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – "more aggression and conflicts" could arise.

Belgium's ex-PM, Guy Verhofstadt, quoted a statement by Churchill regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He added: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."