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Former President Trump stated on Saturday that the Russian-prepared peace plan was not his ultimate proposal, following intense criticism from Ukraine's leaders and analysts who compared it to a Munich pact of 1938 involving Chamberlain and Hitler.

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

Forthcoming Geneva Talks Include Multiple Countries

Ukrainian and American officials will meet in Geneva on Sunday for discussions on the plan. Defense representatives from Germany, France, and the UK are expected to join these negotiations there.

Prior to these discussions, American lawmakers informed the press 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", as reported by Senator King, a member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Faces Critical Deadline

Nevertheless, Trump has set Zelenskyy until Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. The document requires Ukraine to give up land under its control to Russia, downsize the size of its army, and relinquish long-range weapons. It also excludes a European peacekeeping force and penalties for Russian war crimes.

During a solemn address last Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that his country 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 Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukrainian Dialogue Delegation Appointed for Upcoming Talks

Speaking on Saturday, the president said that genuine or "dignified" peace depends on assured safety and fairness. He announced a delegation, appointed through a decree, which will meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, led by his chief of staff Andriy Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and security council official Umerov, stated there would be discussions with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting red lines, Umerov noted: 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 sought to participate positively with the US administration apparently intent to end the conflict 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.

At a meeting in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council issued a collective declaration opposing the proposed deal, saying it needs "additional work". It said that members of the EU and NATO would need to be consulted 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, drawn up by a Russian representative and a US delegate, have been largely negative. Analysts argued it was a blueprint 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, said it invited parallels with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. The proposal belonged to a similar category, with the victim invited "to formulate his own defeat so everyone else can live easier".

In a Facebook post, he said he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. It was an insult people who had hidden in basements in affected cities – sites of civilian executions – and families of deported children to Russian territory. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded.

In an interview in a Kyiv subway station, Dmytro Sariskyi, 21, commented that Moscow has attempted 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. "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 give up its freedoms, he added. If it didn’t, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a vital resource of battlefield information for Ukraine's forces. "There is no good way out of this for now," he remarked.

Varied Viewpoints from the Public

A different commuter, 19-year-old Barchan, said that the country would "keep strong" 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.

While speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna mentioned she was grateful to Trump for his peace-making efforts. She said that the nation ought to consider to give away Crimea and the eastern Donbas region temporarily if it ensured keeping America as a partner. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she proposed.

EU Officials Condemn the Proposal

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin called it a catastrophe, affecting not just Ukraine but for democracies worldwide. She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – "more aggression and conflicts" would follow.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Verhofstadt, referenced 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."