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Ex-leader Trump remarked on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted peace plan was "not my final offer", following intense reaction from Ukrainian officials and analysts that likened it to the 1938 Munich agreement between Chamberlain and Hitler.

In short comments at the White House, the US president told reporters: "We’d like to get to peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we’re trying to get it ended, one way or the other we have to get it ended."

Forthcoming Switzerland Negotiations Include Multiple Countries

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

Prior to the talks, US senators told media outlets that State Department head Marco Rubio contacted them during his travel to Geneva for clarification on the nature of this disclosed proposal. He said, this plan did not originate from the administration but instead a "wish list of the Russians", according to Senator Angus King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Confronts Critical Deadline

Nevertheless, Trump has set Volodymyr Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. The document requires Kyiv to give up territory under its control to Moscow, reduce the size of its army, and surrender advanced weaponry. Additionally, it rules out international peacekeepers and penalties for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn speech last Friday, Zelenskyy warned that his country faces a difficult decision in the near future between keeping the nation's honor and losing a major partner in the shape of the US. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing an extremely challenging period in its history.

Ukraine's Dialogue Team Appointed for Upcoming Talks

In comments on Saturday, Zelenskyy said that genuine or "dignified" peace depends on assured safety and fairness. He revealed a delegation, appointed by presidential decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, led by his chief of staff Yermak.

Another member of the Ukrainian delegation, former defence minister and security council official Umerov, stated they will hold consultations with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting red lines, Umerov added: 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 engage constructively with a White House seemingly determined to end the conflict on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has made clear that he will not surrender the nation's independence or abandon the constitutional framework that protects Ukraine's territorial integrity.

During a summit in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and EU representatives released a collective declaration opposing Trump’s plan, stating it requires further refinement. It said that members of the EU and NATO would need to be consulted on some of its provisions, which rule out Ukraine's NATO accession and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Citizen Views in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, prepared by Putin’s envoy and a US delegate, have been largely negative. Analysts argued it was a blueprint for further Russian aggression: not only of Ukraine but of other parts of Europe too.

Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led the 2014 Maidan protests, said it drew comparisons with the Munich Agreement. The proposal belonged to a similar category, with the victim invited to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

On social media, he expressed he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. This offended 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 rather cynical agreement," he stated.

Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Russia has attempted to dominate Ukraine "for years". It conceded "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and maintained 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 Kyiv would be forced to give up its freedoms, he added. If it didn’t, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a crucial source of battlefield information for frontline Ukrainian troops. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he remarked.

Diverse Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens

Another passenger, 19-year-old Barchan, said that Ukraine would remain resilient without American support. "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 that the president is intelligent and predicted he would not cede territory.

Speaking in the rain, near a historical monument, Ivanovna mentioned she was grateful to the former US leader for his peace-making efforts. She suggested that the nation ought to consider ceding 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 proposed.

European Leaders Condemn the Plan

Former European heads of state have roundly condemned the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin described it as a disaster, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for democracies worldwide. She said if the west showed weakness and ignorance – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – further hostilities would follow.

Belgium's ex-PM, Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition 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."