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Ex-leader Donald Trump indicated on Saturday that his Russian-prepared proposal for peace constituted "not my final offer", after strong reaction from Ukrainian officials and commentators that likened it to a Munich pact of 1938 between Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

In short remarks from the White House, the US president informed journalists: "We’d like to get to peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we’re trying to get it ended, one way or the other it must be resolved."

Upcoming Switzerland Talks Involve Multiple Countries

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

Ahead of the talks, US senators informed the press that State Department head Marco Rubio reached out to them while en route to Switzerland for clarification on the details of this disclosed proposal. He said, this plan "was not the administration’s plan" but rather a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by independent Maine senator King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Confronts Crucial Time Limit

Nevertheless, Trump has set Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday to sign this multi-point agreement. The document requires Kyiv to give up land it currently controls to Russia, downsize the size of its army, and surrender long-range weapons. It also excludes international peacekeepers and penalties for Russian war crimes.

In a sombre speech last Friday, the Ukrainian leader warned that Ukraine confronts an impossible choice over the coming days between keeping its national dignity and losing key ally like the United States. Zelenskyy acknowledged that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukrainian Negotiating Team Formed for Upcoming Meetings

In comments this weekend, Zelenskyy emphasized that real or "dignified" peace depends on assured safety and fairness. He announced a negotiating team, established through a decree, which will meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, headed by top aide Andriy Yermak.

Another member 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.

Suggesting limits, Umerov added: Ukraine enters these talks with defined goals. This is another stage of the dialogue that has been ongoing in recent days and is primarily aimed at aligning our vision for the next steps."

Global Reaction and Concerns

The Ukrainian president has attempted to participate positively with the US administration apparently intent to resolve the war on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has made clear that he will not surrender the nation's independence or abandon a constitution that enshrines the country’s current borders.

At a meeting held in South Africa, G20 leaders and EU representatives released a collective declaration opposing Trump’s plan, stating it needs further refinement. It said that members of the EU and NATO would need to be consulted regarding certain clauses, that exclude Kyiv’s Nato membership and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Public Opinion in Ukraine's Capital

Responses from Ukrainians to the proposal, drawn up by Putin’s envoy and Trump’s representative, have been largely negative. Commentators said it outlined a plan for further Russian aggression: targeting not just Ukraine but other European regions as well.

Mustafa Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, remarked it drew comparisons with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. Trumps’s peace plan belonged to a similar category, with the victim invited to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

In a Facebook post, he said he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. This offended those who sought shelter in affected cities – sites of civilian executions – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russian territory. A deeply cynical deal, he concluded.

In an interview in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, 21, said that Moscow had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". It conceded "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and continued to keep its forces on Ukrainian soil. "I think the deal is an attempt to break Ukraine and force unjust conditions on us," he remarked.

Should Ukraine accept the terms it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he added. If it didn’t, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a crucial source of battlefield information for frontline Ukrainian troops. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he remarked.

Varied Viewpoints from the Public

Another passenger, teenager Sofia Barchan, asserted that Ukraine would "keep strong" without American support. We will continue our struggle as needed. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. They are Ukrainian land." She said Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

While speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna said she was grateful to the former US leader for his attempts to broker peace. She suggested that Ukraine should be ready ceding Crimea and the eastern Donbas region for a limited time if it ensured keeping America as a partner. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she proposed.

European Officials Criticize the Plan

Previous European leaders have roundly condemned this proposal. 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" would follow.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Guy Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He added: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."