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Ex-leader Donald Trump stated on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted peace plan constituted not his ultimate proposal, following intense backlash from Ukraine's officials and analysts that compared it to a Munich pact of 1938 involving Chamberlain and Hitler.

During brief comments at the White House, the US president told reporters: "We’d like to get to peace. This should have occurred earlier … we’re trying to get it ended, one way or the other we have to get it ended."

Forthcoming Geneva Negotiations Include Multiple Nations

US and Ukrainian officials will meet in Switzerland this Sunday for discussions on the plan. Security officials from France, Britain and Germany are expected to join these negotiations in Geneva.

Ahead of the talks, American lawmakers told the press that State Department head Rubio contacted them while en route to Geneva for clarification on the nature of this disclosed proposal. According to him, this plan "was not the administration’s plan" but rather a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by independent Maine senator Angus King, a member on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Faces Critical Deadline

However, the former president has set Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing the 28-point document. It calls on Kyiv to cede territory it currently controls to Russia, reduce the size of its army, and surrender advanced weaponry. It also excludes a European peacekeeping force and penalties for Russian war crimes.

During a solemn address on Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that Ukraine faces an impossible choice over the coming days between keeping the nation's honor and forfeiting a major partner in the shape of the US. He admitted that it faces one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukrainian Dialogue Delegation Appointed for Upcoming Talks

Speaking on Saturday, the president emphasized that real or "dignified" resolution was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He revealed a delegation, appointed through a decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Geneva, headed by his chief of staff Andriy Yermak.

A additional delegate from Ukraine's team, former defence minister and national security council secretary Rustem Umerov, stated there would be discussions with the US regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

Hinting at 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."

Global Reaction and Concerns

Zelenskyy has attempted to engage constructively with a White House seemingly determined to resolve the war on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has emphasized that he will not surrender Ukraine’s sovereignty or disregard a constitution that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.

During a summit in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council released a joint statement opposing Trump’s plan, saying it needs further refinement. The statement indicated that members of the EU and NATO must be involved regarding certain clauses, which rule out Kyiv’s Nato membership and impose terms on its European Union membership.

Public Opinion in Kyiv

Ukrainian reaction to the text, prepared by a Russian representative and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts said it was a blueprint for further Russian aggression: not only of Ukraine but other European regions as well.

Mustafa Nayyem, a journalist and politician involved in the 2014 Maidan protests, remarked it invited parallels with the Munich Agreement. Trumps’s peace plan belonged to the same "recognisable genre", with the victim invited "to formulate his own defeat so everyone else can live easier".

On social media, Nayyem expressed he was outraged by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. It was an insult people who had hidden in basements in affected cities – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – 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 control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". The agreement offered "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and continued to keep 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 it didn’t, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a vital resource of military intelligence for Ukraine's forces. "There is no good way out of this for now," he remarked.

Varied Viewpoints from Ukrainian Citizens

Another passenger, teenager Barchan, said that Ukraine would "keep strong" lacking US backing. We will continue our struggle as needed. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. They are Ukrainian land." She expressed Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and predicted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

Speaking in the rain, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Ivanovna mentioned her appreciation to Trump for his peace-making efforts. She suggested that the nation should be ready ceding 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 proposed.

EU Leaders Condemn the Proposal

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized the plan. Ex-PM of Finland Sanna Marin called it a disaster, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for democracies worldwide. She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – "more aggression and conflicts" could arise.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He added: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. A critical juncture for the European Union."