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Former President Donald Trump stated on Saturday that the Moscow-drafted proposal for peace was not his ultimate proposal, after intense criticism from Ukraine's officials and commentators who likened it to the 1938 Munich agreement involving Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

During brief remarks at the White House, Trump informed 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 it must be resolved."

Forthcoming Geneva Negotiations Involve Various Countries

Ukrainian and American officials are scheduled to meet in Switzerland this Sunday to discuss this proposal. Defense representatives from Germany, France, and the UK will also participate in these negotiations there.

Prior to these discussions, US senators told media outlets that Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to them while en route to Geneva to clarify the details of this disclosed proposal. He said, this plan did not originate from the administration but rather reflected Russian desires, according to Senator King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Confronts Crucial Deadline

However, the former president has set Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. It calls on Kyiv to give up land it currently controls to Moscow, reduce its military forces, and surrender long-range weapons. It also excludes international peacekeepers and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

In a sombre speech on Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that Ukraine faces an impossible choice in the near future between preserving the nation's honor and forfeiting a major partner like the United States. He admitted that it faces one of the most difficult moments historically.

Ukraine's Negotiating Team Appointed for Upcoming Talks

Speaking this weekend, Zelenskyy said that real or respectable resolution was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He revealed a negotiating team, established through a decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, headed by top aide Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and national security council secretary Rustem Umerov, stated there would be consultations with the US regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

Suggesting red lines, he 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

Zelenskyy has attempted to participate positively with a White House apparently intent to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has made clear that he will not surrender Ukraine’s sovereignty or disregard a constitution that protects the country’s current borders.

During a summit held in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council issued a collective declaration pushing back on Trump’s plan, stating 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 put conditions on its European Union membership.

Citizen Views in Ukraine's Capital

Responses from Ukrainians to the proposal, prepared by Putin’s envoy and a US delegate, have been largely negative. Analysts argued it was a blueprint for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but other European regions too.

Nayyem, a journalist and politician involved in the 2014 Maidan protests, remarked it drew comparisons with the Munich Agreement. The proposal belonged to a similar category, where the affected party is asked "to formulate his own defeat so everyone else can live easier".

On social media, Nayyem said he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. It was an insult people who had hidden in basements in Bucha or Mariupol – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and families of deported children to Russia. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded.

Speaking in a Kyiv subway station, Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Russia had been trying to dominate Ukraine over many years. It conceded very little 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 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 vital resource of military intelligence for Ukraine's forces. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted.

Diverse Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens

A different commuter, teenager Barchan, asserted that Ukraine would "keep strong" lacking US backing. "We will fight for as long as it takes. Our territory will remain our territory, including Crimea and the east. They are Ukrainian land." She expressed Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and predicted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

Speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna said she was grateful to Trump for his peace-making efforts. She suggested that Ukraine ought to consider ceding Crimea and the eastern Donbas region temporarily if it meant maintaining US support. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she said.

European Officials Criticize the Proposal

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized this proposal. Ex-PM of Finland Sanna Marin called it a catastrophe, 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" would follow.

Belgium's ex-PM, Guy Verhofstadt, quoted a statement by Churchill 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."