🔗 Share this article Trump Says Peace Proposal Isn't Ultimate Proposal as Officials Assemble for Geneva Meeting Former President Donald Trump stated this past weekend that the Moscow-drafted peace plan was "not my final offer", after fierce backlash from Ukrainian leaders and commentators that likened it to a 1938 Munich agreement between Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler. In short remarks at the White House, Trump informed journalists: "We’d like to get to peace. This should have occurred earlier … we’re trying to get it ended, one way or the other we have to get it ended." Forthcoming Geneva Negotiations Include Various Countries Ukrainian and American officials are scheduled to meet in Geneva this Sunday to discuss the plan. Defense representatives from Germany, France, and the UK are expected to join these negotiations there. Prior to these discussions, American lawmakers informed the press that State Department head Marco Rubio reached out to them while en route to Switzerland to clarify the details of this disclosed proposal. According to him, this plan "was not the administration’s plan" but rather a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by Senator Angus King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Zelenskyy Confronts Critical Deadline However, Trump has set Zelenskyy until Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. The document requires Ukraine to cede land under its control to Russia, downsize its military forces, and relinquish long-range weapons. Additionally, it rules out international peacekeepers and penalties for atrocities committed by Russia. In a sombre address on Friday, the Ukrainian leader cautioned that Ukraine faces an impossible choice in the near future involving preserving its national dignity and forfeiting key ally like the United States. He admitted that Ukraine is experiencing an extremely challenging period in its history. Ukraine's Negotiating Team Appointed for Geneva Meetings Speaking this weekend, Zelenskyy said that real or respectable resolution was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He revealed a delegation, established through a decree, that would soon meet American representatives in Geneva, headed by top aide Yermak. A additional delegate of the Ukrainian delegation, ex-defense head and security council official Rustem Umerov, stated they will hold consultations with the US regarding potential terms for a peace deal. Hinting at red lines, Umerov 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." International Response and Criticism The Ukrainian president has attempted to participate positively with the US administration seemingly determined to resolve the war on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has emphasized he cannot give up the nation's independence or abandon the constitutional framework that protects the country’s current borders. At a meeting in South Africa, leaders from the G20 and the European Council released a joint statement opposing the proposed deal, stating it requires "additional work". It said that members of the EU and NATO must be involved regarding certain clauses, which rule out Kyiv’s Nato membership and put conditions on its future EU accession. Public Opinion in Ukraine's Capital Ukrainian reaction to the text, drawn up by Putin’s envoy and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts said it outlined a plan for another Russian invasion: not only of Ukraine but of other parts of Europe as well. Nayyem, a journalist and politician involved in Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, remarked it invited parallels 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. In a Facebook post, Nayyem expressed he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. It was an insult those who sought shelter in affected cities – sites of civilian executions – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russian territory. "A rather cynical agreement," he concluded. Speaking in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, a young adult, commented that Moscow has attempted to dominate Ukraine "for years". It conceded "barely anything" 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 remarked. If Zelenskyy signed off on the proposals it would be compelled to sacrifice its liberties, he said. 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. "There is no good way out of this for now," he noted. Diverse Perspectives from Ukrainian Citizens Another passenger, teenager Barchan, asserted 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. It belongs to Ukraine." She said that the president is intelligent and forecasted he would not cede territory. While speaking during rainfall, next to a replica of Kyiv’s original medieval gate, Olena Ivanovna mentioned her appreciation to Trump for his peace-making efforts. She said that the nation should be ready to give away Crimea and the eastern Donbas region temporarily if it meant maintaining US support. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she proposed. EU Leaders Criticize the Plan Previous European leaders have roundly condemned the plan. Finland’s former prime minister Marin described it as a catastrophe, not only for Ukraine and Ukrainians but for democracies worldwide. She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – similar to the 2014 Crimea annexation – further hostilities would follow. The former prime minister of Belgium, Guy Verhofstadt, referenced Churchill’s definition of an appeaser as "one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last". He added: "Trump now takes Putin’s side. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. A critical juncture for the European Union."