🔗 Share this article

Former President Trump stated on Saturday that his Moscow-drafted peace plan was "not my final offer", following fierce reaction from Ukrainian leaders and analysts who likened it to a Munich pact of 1938 between Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler.

During short remarks at the White House, Trump told journalists: Our goal is to achieve peace. This should have occurred earlier … we’re trying to get it ended, one way or the other it must be resolved."

Forthcoming Geneva Talks Involve Various Countries

US and Ukrainian delegates will meet in Switzerland on Sunday to discuss the plan. Security officials from France, Britain and Germany are expected to join the talks there.

Ahead of the talks, US senators told the press that Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Switzerland to clarify the nature of this disclosed proposal. He said, the proposal did not originate from the administration but rather reflected Russian desires, as reported by independent Maine senator King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Confronts Crucial Time Limit

However, Trump has given Volodymyr Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday to sign this multi-point agreement. It calls on Ukraine to cede territory it currently controls to Russia, reduce its military forces, and relinquish advanced weaponry. It also excludes international peacekeepers and penalties for atrocities committed by Russia.

During a solemn address last Friday, the Ukrainian leader cautioned that his country faces an impossible choice in the near future between preserving its national dignity and losing a major partner like the United States. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing one of the most difficult moments in its history.

Ukrainian Dialogue Delegation Formed for Upcoming Talks

In comments on Saturday, the president said that genuine or "dignified" peace depends on "guaranteed security and justice". He revealed a negotiating team, appointed through a decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Geneva, headed by top aide Andriy Yermak.

Another member from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and security council official Rustem Umerov, stated they will hold discussions with the US "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".

Hinting at red lines, he 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 attempted to engage constructively with a White House apparently intent to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has emphasized that he will not surrender Ukraine’s sovereignty or abandon the constitutional framework that enshrines the country’s current borders.

During a summit in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council released a collective declaration pushing back on the proposed deal, stating it needs "additional work". It said that EU and Nato members would need to be consulted on some of its provisions, which rule out Kyiv’s Nato membership and impose terms on its future EU accession.

Public Opinion in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, prepared by Putin’s envoy and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Commentators argued it was a blueprint for another Russian invasion: not only of Ukraine but of other parts of Europe too.

Mustafa Nayyem, a public figure 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, where the affected party is asked to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

On social media, he said his anger by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. This offended those who sought shelter in Bucha or Mariupol – sites of civilian executions – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russia. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded.

Speaking in a Kyiv subway station, Dmytro Sariskyi, a young adult, said that Moscow has attempted to control Ukraine politically and territorially "for years". The agreement offered very little in the proposed deal 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 sacrifice its liberties, he added. If it didn’t, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a crucial source of military intelligence for frontline Ukrainian troops. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he remarked.

Varied Viewpoints from the Public

A different commuter, 19-year-old Sofia Barchan, asserted that the country would remain resilient without American support. We will continue our struggle as needed. Crimea and the eastern regions are part of Ukraine. It belongs to Ukraine." She expressed that the president is intelligent and forecasted he would not cede territory.

Speaking in the rain, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Ivanovna mentioned she was grateful to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She suggested that Ukraine ought to consider to give away certain regions 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 Proposal

Former European heads of state have strongly criticized the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Marin described it as a catastrophe, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians 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 – "more aggression and conflicts" would follow.

Belgium's ex-PM, Guy Verhofstadt, referenced a statement by Churchill regarding appeasement as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He added: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. Another moment of truth for our [European] union."