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Ex-leader Trump remarked on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted proposal for peace was not his ultimate proposal, following intense criticism from Ukraine's officials and analysts that compared it to a 1938 Munich agreement between Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

In brief comments from the White House, the US president told reporters: "We’d like to get to peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we’re trying to get it ended, in any case we have to get it ended."

Upcoming Switzerland Negotiations Involve Various Nations

US and Ukrainian delegates will meet in Switzerland this Sunday to discuss the plan. Defense representatives from France, Britain and Germany are expected to join these negotiations in Geneva.

Prior to these discussions, US senators informed the press that Secretary of State Marco Rubio contacted 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 a "wish list of the Russians", according to independent Maine senator King, a member on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Faces Crucial Deadline

However, Trump has given Zelenskyy until Thursday to sign this multi-point agreement. It calls on Ukraine to give up territory it currently controls to Russia, reduce its military forces, and surrender long-range weapons. It also excludes international peacekeepers and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

In a sombre address last Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that Ukraine faces an impossible choice over the coming days involving keeping its national dignity and losing key ally in the shape of the US. Zelenskyy acknowledged that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments historically.

Ukrainian Negotiating Delegation Formed for Geneva Meetings

In comments this weekend, Zelenskyy emphasized that real or respectable resolution depends on "guaranteed security and justice". He announced a negotiating team, appointed by presidential decree, which will meet its US counterparts in Geneva, led by top aide Andriy Yermak.

A additional delegate from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and security council official Umerov, said they will hold consultations with the US regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

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

Global Reaction and Criticism

The Ukrainian president has sought to participate positively with a White House apparently intent to end the conflict on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has emphasized that he will not surrender the nation's independence or disregard a constitution that protects Ukraine's territorial integrity.

During a summit held in South Africa, G20 leaders and EU representatives released a joint statement opposing Trump’s plan, saying it needs "additional work". The statement indicated that members of the EU and NATO would need to be consulted regarding certain clauses, which rule out Ukraine's NATO accession and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Citizen Opinion in Ukraine's Capital

Ukrainian reaction to the text, prepared by Putin’s envoy and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Commentators said it outlined a plan for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but other European regions too.

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 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 the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. It was an insult those who sought shelter in affected cities – sites of civilian executions – and families of deported children to Russian territory. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded.

Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Russia had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially over many 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.

Should Ukraine accept the terms it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he added. If rejected, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a vital resource of military intelligence for frontline Ukrainian troops. "There is no good way out of this for now," he remarked.

Varied Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens

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

Speaking during rainfall, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Ivanovna said she was grateful to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She said that Ukraine ought to consider to give away certain regions for a limited time if it ensured maintaining US support. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she said.

EU Officials Condemn the Proposal

Former European heads of state have roundly condemned the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin described it as a disaster, affecting not just Ukraine but for democracies worldwide. She said if Western nations display vulnerability – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – further hostilities could arise.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He continued: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."