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Former President Donald Trump stated this past weekend that his Russian-prepared proposal for peace was "not my final offer", following strong reaction from Ukrainian officials and commentators who compared it to a 1938 Munich agreement between Chamberlain and Hitler.

In short remarks at the White House, the US president 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 Include Multiple Countries

Ukrainian and American officials are scheduled to meet in Switzerland on Sunday to discuss the plan. Security officials from Germany, France, and the UK are expected to join the talks in Geneva.

Ahead of the talks, US senators told the press that Secretary of State Rubio contacted them during his travel to Switzerland for clarification on the details of the leaked plan. He said, the proposal "was not the administration’s plan" but instead a "wish list of the Russians", according to Senator King, a member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Faces Crucial Time Limit

However, Trump has set Zelenskyy until Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. The document requires Kyiv to cede land it currently controls to Moscow, downsize 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 speech last Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that Ukraine faces a difficult decision in the near future between preserving the nation's honor and losing key ally in the shape of the US. Zelenskyy acknowledged that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukraine's Dialogue Delegation Formed for Upcoming Meetings

In comments this weekend, Zelenskyy emphasized that genuine or respectable peace depends on "guaranteed security and justice". He announced a delegation, appointed by presidential decree, which will meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, led by his chief of staff Andriy Yermak.

A additional delegate of the Ukrainian delegation, ex-defense head and national security council secretary Umerov, said they will hold discussions with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Suggesting limits, Umerov added: "Ukraine approaches this process with a clear understanding of its interests. This represents a continuation of recent discussions focused on harmonizing our plans for future actions."

Global Reaction and Criticism

Zelenskyy has attempted to engage constructively with a White House apparently intent to resolve the war on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has emphasized he cannot give up the nation's independence or disregard a constitution that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.

During a summit held in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council issued a collective declaration pushing back on the proposed deal, stating it needs further refinement. It said 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 future EU accession.

Citizen Views in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the proposal, drawn up by a Russian representative and a US delegate, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Commentators argued it was a blueprint for another Russian invasion: targeting not just Ukraine but of other parts of Europe too.

Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, remarked it drew comparisons with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. The proposal came from a similar category, with the victim invited "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. 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 Russia. "A rather cynical agreement," he stated.

In an interview in a Kyiv subway station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, commented that Russia had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially over many 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 said.

Should Ukraine accept the terms it would be compelled to give up its freedoms, he said. 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. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted.

Diverse Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens

A different commuter, teenager Sofia Barchan, said that the country would "keep strong" without American support. 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.

While speaking during rainfall, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Olena Ivanovna mentioned she was grateful to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She suggested that Ukraine ought to consider to give away Crimea and the eastern Donbas region for a limited time if it meant maintaining US support. "President Zelenskyy should hold a referendum and ask the people," she said.

EU Officials Condemn the Proposal

Former European heads of state have roundly condemned the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Sanna Marin called it a catastrophe, affecting not just Ukraine but for democracies worldwide. She said if Western nations display vulnerability – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – "more aggression and conflicts" could arise.

Belgium's ex-PM, Verhofstadt, quoted 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. A critical juncture for the European Union."