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Ex-leader Trump stated on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted peace plan constituted not his ultimate proposal, after strong reaction from Ukrainian officials and analysts that compared it to the Munich pact of 1938 between Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

During brief comments at the White House, Trump told journalists: Our goal is to achieve peace. This should have occurred earlier … we are attempting to conclude it, one way or the other it must be resolved."

Forthcoming Geneva Negotiations Involve Multiple Nations

US and Ukrainian delegates are scheduled to meet in Geneva on Sunday to discuss this proposal. Security officials from France, Britain and Germany are expected to join the talks in Geneva.

Ahead of these discussions, US senators informed media outlets that Secretary of State Marco Rubio contacted them during his travel to Switzerland to clarify the details of this disclosed proposal. According to him, the proposal did not originate from the administration but rather reflected Russian desires, according to independent Maine senator Angus King, a member on the 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. It calls on Kyiv to cede territory under its control to Russia, reduce the size of its army, and relinquish long-range weapons. It also excludes a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

In a sombre address last Friday, Zelenskyy warned that his country faces a difficult decision over the coming days involving keeping the nation's honor and losing a major partner in the shape of the US. Zelenskyy acknowledged that it faces an extremely challenging period in its history.

Ukrainian Negotiating Delegation Formed for Geneva Meetings

In comments this weekend, the president emphasized that genuine or respectable resolution was always based on assured safety and fairness. He announced a negotiating team, appointed by presidential decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Geneva, headed by top aide Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and security council official Umerov, stated they will hold discussions with Washington regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

Suggesting limits, Umerov noted: Ukraine enters these talks with defined goals. This represents a continuation of recent discussions focused on harmonizing our plans for future actions."

Global Response and Criticism

Zelenskyy has attempted to participate positively with the US administration apparently intent to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has emphasized that he will not surrender Ukraine’s sovereignty or abandon the constitutional framework that enshrines the country’s current borders.

During a summit in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council issued a joint statement pushing back on Trump’s plan, stating it requires "additional work". The statement indicated that members of the EU and NATO must be involved regarding certain clauses, which rule out Ukraine's NATO accession and put conditions on its future EU accession.

Citizen Opinion in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, drawn up by a Russian representative and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts said it outlined a plan for further Russian aggression: not only of Ukraine but other European regions as well.

Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led the 2014 Maidan protests, said it invited parallels with the Munich Agreement. The proposal came from 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 its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. This offended people who had hidden in basements in Bucha or Mariupol – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russia. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded.

In an interview in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, 21, said that Moscow had been trying to dominate Ukraine over many years. It conceded "barely anything" in the proposed deal and continued to keep its forces on Ukrainian soil. In my view, this deal aims to undermine Ukraine and impose unfair terms, he remarked.

Should Ukraine accept the terms it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he said. If it didn’t, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a vital resource of military intelligence for Ukraine's forces. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he noted.

Diverse Viewpoints from Ukrainian Citizens

Another passenger, teenager Barchan, said that the country would "keep strong" without American support. "We will fight for as long as it takes. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. It belongs to Ukraine." She said that the president is intelligent and predicted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

Speaking in the rain, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Olena Ivanovna said her appreciation to the former US leader for his peace-making efforts. She said that the nation should be ready ceding certain regions temporarily if it meant maintaining US support. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she said.

European Officials Criticize the Plan

Previous European leaders have strongly criticized this proposal. Ex-PM of Finland Sanna Marin called it a disaster, affecting not just Ukraine but for democracies worldwide. She said if the west showed weakness and ignorance – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – further hostilities would follow.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He continued: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. A critical juncture for the European Union."