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Ex-leader Trump remarked on Saturday that the Moscow-drafted peace plan was "not my final offer", after strong criticism from Ukraine's officials and analysts that compared it to the 1938 Munich agreement involving Neville Chamberlain and Hitler.

In short comments from the White House, Trump told reporters: "We’d like to get to peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we are attempting to conclude it, in any case it must be resolved."

Forthcoming Geneva Negotiations Include Various Countries

Ukrainian and American officials are scheduled to meet in Geneva on Sunday for discussions on this proposal. Defense representatives from France, Britain and Germany will also participate in the talks in Geneva.

Prior to the talks, American lawmakers told the press that State Department head Marco Rubio reached out to them while en route to Switzerland to clarify the details of this disclosed proposal. According to him, the proposal "was not the administration’s plan" but rather reflected Russian desires, as reported by Senator King, a member on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Faces Critical Deadline

Nevertheless, the former president has set Zelenskyy until Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. It calls on Ukraine to give up territory it currently controls to Russia, reduce its military forces, and relinquish long-range weapons. Additionally, it rules out a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

In a sombre address last Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that his country confronts a difficult decision in the near future involving keeping the nation's honor and forfeiting key ally like the United States. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments historically.

Ukrainian Negotiating Delegation Formed for Geneva Talks

Speaking this weekend, Zelenskyy said that real or "dignified" peace depends on "guaranteed security and justice". He announced a negotiating team, appointed by presidential decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Geneva, led by top aide Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, former defence minister and security council official Rustem Umerov, said there would be discussions with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Hinting at red lines, he added: 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 Criticism

Zelenskyy has attempted to engage constructively with the US administration apparently intent to resolve the war based on Russian conditions. He has made clear he cannot give up the nation's independence 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, stating it needs "additional work". It said that EU and Nato members would need to be consulted regarding certain clauses, that exclude Kyiv’s Nato membership and impose terms on its future EU accession.

Citizen Views in Ukraine's Capital

Ukrainian reaction to the proposal, drawn up by Putin’s envoy and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts said it outlined a plan for another Russian invasion: not only of Ukraine but of other parts of Europe as well.

Nayyem, a journalist and politician involved in Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, said it invited parallels with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. The proposal belonged to a similar category, where the affected party is asked "to formulate his own defeat so everyone else can live easier".

In a Facebook post, Nayyem said he was outraged by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. It was an insult people who had hidden in basements in affected cities – sites of civilian executions – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russia. A deeply cynical deal, he stated.

In an interview in a Kyiv subway station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Moscow has attempted to control Ukraine politically and territorially over many 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 said.

Should Ukraine accept the terms Kyiv would be forced to give up its freedoms, he said. If it didn’t, 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 remarked.

Varied Viewpoints from Ukrainian Citizens

A different commuter, teenager Barchan, said that Ukraine would remain resilient without American support. We will continue our struggle as needed. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. They are Ukrainian land." She expressed that the president is intelligent and forecasted he would not cede territory.

While speaking in the rain, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Olena Ivanovna mentioned her appreciation to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She suggested that the nation should be ready to give away Crimea and the eastern Donbas region for a limited time if it meant keeping America as a partner. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she said.

EU Leaders Condemn the Proposal

Previous European leaders have strongly criticized this proposal. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin described it as a disaster, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for "all of the democratic world". She said if the west showed weakness and ignorance – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – further hostilities could arise.

Belgium's ex-PM, Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as "one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last". He continued: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."