🔗 Share this article

Ex-leader Trump remarked on Saturday that the Russian-prepared peace plan was "not my final offer", following fierce reaction from Ukraine's officials and analysts who likened it to the 1938 Munich agreement involving Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

During brief comments from the White House, Trump informed reporters: "We’d like to get to peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we’re trying to get it ended, in any case we have to get it ended."

Forthcoming Geneva Negotiations Include Various Nations

Ukrainian and American officials will meet in Geneva this Sunday to discuss the plan. Defense representatives from Germany, France, and the UK will also participate in the talks there.

Ahead of these discussions, American lawmakers informed the press that Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Geneva for clarification on the nature of the leaked plan. According to him, the proposal did not originate from the administration but rather a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by independent Maine senator Angus King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Zelenskyy Confronts Crucial Deadline

However, the former president has given Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing the 28-point document. The document requires Ukraine to cede land it currently controls to Russia, reduce its military forces, and surrender long-range weapons. Additionally, it excludes a European peacekeeping force and penalties for Russian war crimes.

During a solemn address on Friday, Zelenskyy cautioned that his country confronts an impossible choice in the near future between preserving the nation's honor and losing a major partner in the shape of the US. Zelenskyy acknowledged that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukraine's Negotiating Delegation Formed for Geneva Talks

Speaking this weekend, the president emphasized that real or "dignified" peace was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He revealed a delegation, appointed through a decree, which will meet American representatives in Switzerland, headed by his chief of staff Andriy Yermak.

A additional delegate from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and security council official Umerov, said there would be consultations with Washington regarding potential terms for a peace deal.

Suggesting limits, he 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 Response and Concerns

Zelenskyy has sought to participate positively with the US administration apparently intent to end the conflict on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has made clear he cannot give up Ukraine’s sovereignty or abandon a constitution that protects the country’s current borders.

During a summit in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council issued a joint statement opposing Trump’s plan, saying it requires further refinement. It said that members of the EU and NATO must be involved on some of its provisions, that exclude Kyiv’s Nato membership and impose terms on its future EU accession.

Citizen Views in Ukraine's Capital

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, prepared by a Russian representative and a US delegate, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts said it was a blueprint for further Russian aggression: not only of Ukraine but of other parts of Europe as well.

Nayyem, a public figure who led Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, remarked it invited parallels with the Munich Agreement. Trumps’s peace plan belonged to a similar category, with the victim invited to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

On social media, Nayyem said 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 families of deported children to Russian territory. A deeply cynical deal, he concluded.

Speaking in a Kyiv subway station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, commented that Moscow has attempted to dominate Ukraine "for years". The agreement offered "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 said.

If Zelenskyy signed off on the proposals it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he said. If rejected, the US might cease collaboration and intelligence exchange, a vital resource of military intelligence for frontline Ukrainian troops. "There is no good way out of this for now," he remarked.

Diverse Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens

A different commuter, 19-year-old Sofia Barchan, said that the country would remain resilient without American support. We will continue our struggle as needed. Our territory will remain our territory, including Crimea and the east. It belongs to Ukraine." She expressed that the president is intelligent and predicted he would not cede territory.

Speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Ivanovna mentioned her appreciation to Trump for his peace-making efforts. She said that Ukraine ought to consider ceding certain regions temporarily if it ensured keeping America as a partner. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she said.

EU Leaders Condemn the Proposal

Previous European leaders have roundly condemned this proposal. Ex-PM of Finland Marin described it as a disaster, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for democracies worldwide. She said if Western nations display vulnerability – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – further hostilities could arise.

Belgium's ex-PM, Guy Verhofstadt, quoted Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He continued: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. A critical juncture for the European Union."