Former President Donald Trump stated on Saturday that his Russian-prepared peace plan constituted "not my final offer", following intense backlash from Ukrainian officials and commentators that likened it to a Munich pact of 1938 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 are attempting to conclude it, one way or the other we have to get it ended."
US and Ukrainian delegates are scheduled to meet in Switzerland this Sunday for discussions on the plan. Defense representatives from France, Britain and Germany will also participate in these negotiations in Geneva.
Prior to these discussions, US senators told the press that Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to them during his travel to Switzerland to clarify the details of the leaked plan. According to him, the proposal "was not the administration’s plan" but rather a "wish list of the Russians", as reported by independent Maine senator King, a member on the Foreign Relations Committee.
Nevertheless, Trump has set Zelenskyy a deadline of Thursday for signing this multi-point agreement. It calls on Ukraine to cede territory under its control to Russia, downsize its military forces, and relinquish long-range weapons. It also excludes international peacekeepers and penalties for Russian war crimes.
In a sombre speech last Friday, the Ukrainian leader cautioned that Ukraine faces an impossible choice in the near future involving preserving the nation's honor and losing a major partner in the shape of the US. Zelenskyy acknowledged that it faces an extremely challenging period historically.
In comments this weekend, the president said that genuine or respectable peace was always based on "guaranteed security and justice". He revealed a delegation, appointed through a decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Geneva, headed by his chief of staff Andriy Yermak.
Another member from Ukraine's team, ex-defense head and security council official Rustem Umerov, stated they will hold discussions with Washington "on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement".
Hinting at limits, Umerov added: "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."
The Ukrainian president has attempted to engage constructively with a White House apparently intent to end the conflict based on Russian conditions. He has made clear he cannot give up Ukraine’s sovereignty or abandon the constitutional framework that enshrines Ukraine's territorial integrity.
During a summit held in South Africa, G20 leaders and the European Council released a joint statement pushing back on Trump’s plan, stating it requires "additional work". It said that EU and Nato members would need to be consulted regarding certain clauses, which rule out Kyiv’s Nato membership and put conditions on its future EU accession.
Responses from Ukrainians to the text, drawn up by a Russian representative and Trump’s representative, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Commentators argued it outlined a plan for another Russian invasion: not only of Ukraine but other European regions too.
Nayyem, a journalist and politician who led the 2014 Maidan protests, remarked it drew comparisons with the Munich Agreement. The proposal came from the same "recognisable genre", with the victim invited to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.
In a Facebook post, he said he was outraged by the complete pardon for Russian atrocities. It was an insult those who sought shelter in affected cities – where Russian troops executed hundreds of civilians – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russian territory. A deeply cynical deal, he stated.
In an interview in a Kyiv subway station, Dmytro Sariskyi, 21, said that Moscow had been trying to control Ukraine politically and territorially over many years. The agreement offered very little in the Trump agreement and maintained its forces on Ukrainian soil. 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 give up its freedoms, he added. If rejected, the US would most likely break off cooperation and intelligence sharing, a crucial source of military intelligence for Ukraine's forces. Currently, there is no favorable solution, he remarked.
A different commuter, teenager Barchan, said that the country would remain resilient lacking US backing. "We will fight for as long as it takes. Our territory will remain our territory, including Crimea and the east. They are Ukrainian land." She expressed that the president is intelligent and forecasted he would not cede territory.
Speaking in the rain, near a historical monument, Ivanovna said her appreciation to Trump for his peace-making efforts. She said that Ukraine should be ready ceding certain regions for a limited time if it meant keeping America as a partner. The president should conduct a public vote on this matter, she proposed.
Previous European leaders have roundly condemned the plan. Ex-PM of Finland Sanna Marin described it as a catastrophe, affecting not just Ukraine but for "all of the democratic world". She said if Western nations display vulnerability – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – further hostilities could arise.
The former prime minister of Belgium, Guy Verhofstadt, quoted a statement by Churchill of an appeaser as someone who accommodates an aggressor. He added: Trump aligns with Putin. Europe must choose again: appeasement or our values, imperialism or freedom. A critical juncture for the European Union."
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