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Ex-leader Trump stated this past weekend that his Moscow-drafted proposal for peace was "not my final offer", after fierce reaction from Ukraine's leaders and commentators who compared it to a 1938 Munich agreement involving Neville Chamberlain and Hitler.

During brief remarks at the White House, the US president informed reporters: "We’d like to get to peace. This should have occurred earlier … we are attempting to conclude it, one way or the other it must be resolved."

Forthcoming Switzerland Talks Include Various Nations

US and Ukrainian delegates will meet in Switzerland this Sunday for discussions on this proposal. Defense representatives from France, Britain and Germany are expected to join these negotiations there.

Ahead of the talks, American lawmakers told media outlets that Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Geneva for clarification on the nature of this disclosed proposal. According to him, the proposal did not originate from the administration but rather reflected Russian desires, as reported by Senator Angus King, who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Faces Crucial Time Limit

However, the former president has set Volodymyr Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing the 28-point document. It calls on Kyiv to give up territory under its control to Russia, reduce the size of its army, and relinquish long-range weapons. It also rules out a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn speech on Friday, the Ukrainian leader warned that Ukraine confronts a difficult decision over the coming days between keeping the nation's honor and losing key ally like the United States. Zelenskyy acknowledged that it faces an extremely challenging period historically.

Ukrainian Negotiating Delegation Appointed for Upcoming Talks

Speaking this weekend, the president emphasized that genuine or respectable peace was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He announced a delegation, established by presidential decree, that would soon meet American representatives in Geneva, led by top aide Yermak.

A additional delegate from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and security council official Rustem Umerov, said there would be consultations with the US "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting limits, 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 sought to participate positively with the US administration seemingly determined to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has emphasized that he will not surrender the nation's independence or disregard the constitutional framework that protects the country’s current borders.

At a meeting in South Africa, G20 leaders and EU representatives issued a joint statement pushing back on the proposed deal, stating it needs further refinement. The statement indicated that EU and Nato members would need to be consulted on some of its provisions, which rule out Ukraine's NATO accession and impose terms on its European Union membership.

Public Opinion in Kyiv

Ukrainian reaction to the text, drawn up by a Russian representative and a US delegate, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts argued it outlined a plan for further Russian aggression: targeting not just Ukraine but other European regions too.

Mustafa Nayyem, a public figure who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, said it drew comparisons with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. Trumps’s peace plan belonged to a similar category, where the affected party is asked to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

In a Facebook post, Nayyem said his anger by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. This offended those who sought shelter in Bucha or Mariupol – sites of civilian executions – and families of deported children to Russian territory. A deeply cynical deal, he concluded.

In an interview in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Russia had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". The agreement offered very little 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 Kyiv would be forced to give up its freedoms, he added. If rejected, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a crucial source of battlefield information 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, asserted that Ukraine would remain resilient lacking US backing. We will continue our struggle as needed. Our territory will remain our territory, including Crimea and the east. They are Ukrainian land." She said Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not cede territory.

Speaking during rainfall, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Olena Ivanovna said her appreciation to Trump for his peace-making efforts. She suggested that Ukraine ought to consider to give away Crimea and the eastern Donbas region temporarily if it meant keeping America as a partner. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she said.

European Officials Criticize the Proposal

Previous European leaders have strongly criticized the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin described it as a catastrophe, affecting not just Ukraine but for "all of the democratic world". 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, referenced Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as "one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last". He added: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. A critical juncture for the European Union."