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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 leaders and analysts who compared it to a Munich pact of 1938 involving Neville Chamberlain and Hitler.

During short comments at the White House, Trump told reporters: Our goal is to achieve peace. This should have occurred earlier … we are attempting to conclude it, in any case we have to get it ended."

Forthcoming Switzerland Talks Involve Multiple Countries

Ukrainian and American officials will meet in Switzerland this Sunday to discuss the plan. Defense representatives from France, Britain and Germany are expected to join these negotiations in Geneva.

Prior to the talks, US senators informed the press that Secretary of State Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Geneva to clarify the details of the leaked plan. He said, this plan did not originate from the administration but rather reflected Russian desires, according to Senator Angus King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Faces Critical Time Limit

However, the former president has set Zelenskyy until Thursday to sign this multi-point agreement. It calls on Kyiv to give up land it currently controls to Moscow, downsize the size of its army, and relinquish advanced weaponry. It also rules out international peacekeepers and penalties for atrocities committed by Russia.

In a sombre speech on Friday, the Ukrainian leader warned that Ukraine faces a difficult decision over the coming days between keeping the nation's honor and forfeiting key ally in the shape of the US. He admitted that it faces one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukraine's Dialogue Team Appointed for Upcoming Talks

In comments on Saturday, Zelenskyy said that real or respectable resolution depends on assured safety and fairness. He revealed a negotiating team, appointed by presidential decree, which will meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, led by his chief of staff Yermak.

Another member of the Ukrainian delegation, former defence minister and national security council secretary Rustem Umerov, stated there would be discussions with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting red lines, he noted: 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

Zelenskyy has attempted to engage constructively with the US administration apparently intent to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has made clear that he will not surrender the nation's independence or abandon the constitutional framework that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.

At a meeting in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council released a collective declaration pushing back on the proposed deal, saying it requires further refinement. 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 European Union membership.

Citizen Views in Ukraine's Capital

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, drawn up by Putin’s envoy and Trump’s representative, 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 public figure who led the 2014 Maidan protests, remarked it drew comparisons with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. Trumps’s peace plan came from the same "recognisable genre", where the affected party is asked to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

On social media, he expressed he was outraged by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. This offended people who had hidden in basements in affected cities – sites of civilian executions – and families of deported children to Russia. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded.

Speaking in a Kyiv subway station, Sariskyi, a young adult, commented that Moscow has attempted to control Ukraine politically and territorially over many years. The agreement offered "barely anything" in the proposed deal and maintained 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 it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he said. If rejected, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a crucial source of military intelligence for frontline Ukrainian troops. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he remarked.

Diverse Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens

A different commuter, 19-year-old Barchan, asserted that Ukraine would remain resilient without American support. "We will fight for as long as it takes. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. They are Ukrainian land." She said Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

Speaking during rainfall, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Olena Ivanovna mentioned her appreciation to the former US leader for his attempts to broker peace. She suggested that the nation should be ready ceding certain regions for a limited time if it meant keeping America as a partner. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she said.

European Officials Criticize the Plan

Former European heads of state have roundly condemned this proposal. Ex-PM of Finland Marin described it as a disaster, affecting not just Ukraine but for "all of the democratic world". She said if the west showed weakness and ignorance – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – further hostilities would follow.

Belgium's ex-PM, Guy Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as "one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last". He added: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. A critical juncture for the European Union."