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Former President Trump indicated this past weekend that his Moscow-drafted peace plan constituted "not my final offer", after strong criticism from Ukrainian officials and analysts who likened it to the Munich pact of 1938 involving Chamberlain and Hitler.

During brief comments from 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."

Upcoming Switzerland Talks Involve Multiple Countries

US and Ukrainian officials will meet in Switzerland on Sunday to discuss the plan. Defense representatives from France, Britain and Germany will also participate in these negotiations there.

Ahead of these discussions, American lawmakers told media outlets that Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to them while en route to Geneva to clarify the nature of the leaked plan. He said, this plan "was not the administration’s plan" but instead a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by independent Maine senator Angus King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Faces Critical Deadline

However, the former president has given Zelenskyy until Thursday for signing the 28-point document. It calls on Ukraine to cede land under its control to Russia, reduce its military forces, and surrender long-range weapons. Additionally, it rules out a European peacekeeping force and sanctions for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn speech last Friday, the Ukrainian leader cautioned that his country faces an impossible choice in the near future involving keeping its national dignity and forfeiting key ally like the United States. Zelenskyy acknowledged that it faces an extremely challenging period in its history.

Ukrainian Negotiating Team Formed for Upcoming Meetings

Speaking this weekend, Zelenskyy emphasized that genuine or respectable peace was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He revealed a delegation, established by presidential decree, which will meet American representatives in Switzerland, led by his chief of staff Yermak.

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

Hinting at red lines, Umerov noted: "Ukraine approaches this process with a clear understanding of its interests. 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 Response and Concerns

The Ukrainian president has attempted to participate positively with a White House apparently intent to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has made clear he cannot give up the nation's independence or disregard the constitutional framework that protects Ukraine's territorial integrity.

At a meeting held in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council released a joint statement pushing back on Trump’s plan, stating it needs "additional work". It said that EU and Nato members would need to be consulted regarding certain clauses, which rule out Ukraine's NATO accession and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Public Opinion in Ukraine's Capital

Responses from Ukrainians to the proposal, prepared by a Russian representative and Trump’s representative, have been largely negative. Analysts said it outlined a plan for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but other European regions as well.

Nayyem, a public figure who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, said it invited parallels with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. The proposal belonged to the same "recognisable genre", where the affected party is asked to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

In a Facebook post, he expressed 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 Russian territory. A deeply cynical deal, he stated.

In an interview in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, commented that Moscow had been trying to dominate Ukraine over many years. The agreement offered "barely anything" in the Trump agreement and maintained troops in Ukraine. 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 give up its freedoms, he said. If rejected, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a crucial source of military intelligence for frontline Ukrainian troops. "There is no good way out of this for now," he remarked.

Diverse Perspectives from the Public

Another passenger, 19-year-old Barchan, asserted 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 expressed Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not cede territory.

While speaking in the rain, near a historical monument, Olena Ivanovna mentioned she was grateful to Trump for his peace-making efforts. She said that Ukraine should be ready ceding certain regions for a limited time if it ensured keeping America as a partner. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she proposed.

European Leaders Criticize the Proposal

Former European heads of state have roundly condemned the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin described it as a catastrophe, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for "all of the democratic world". She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – further hostilities would follow.

The former prime minister of Belgium, Verhofstadt, referenced Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as "one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last". He continued: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."