🔗 Share this article

Ex-leader Donald Trump remarked this past weekend that the Moscow-drafted proposal for peace constituted "not my final offer", after intense reaction from Ukraine's officials and analysts that likened it to a Munich pact of 1938 involving Chamberlain and Hitler.

In brief comments at the White House, the US president informed journalists: Our goal is to achieve peace. It should’ve happened a long time ago … we are attempting to conclude it, in any case it must be resolved."

Upcoming Geneva Negotiations Include Multiple Nations

Ukrainian and American delegates will meet in Geneva on Sunday for discussions on this proposal. Security officials from Germany, France, and the UK will also participate in the talks there.

Ahead of the talks, US senators informed the press that State Department head Marco Rubio reached out to them while en route to Switzerland for clarification on the details of this disclosed proposal. He said, the proposal did not originate from the administration but instead a "wish list of the Russians", according to independent Maine senator Angus King, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Ukraine's President Confronts Crucial Deadline

Nevertheless, Trump has set Zelenskyy until Thursday to sign this multi-point agreement. The document requires Ukraine to give up land it currently controls to Russia, downsize its military forces, and surrender advanced weaponry. Additionally, it excludes a European peacekeeping force and penalties for atrocities committed by Russia.

In a sombre address on Friday, the Ukrainian leader cautioned that his country faces an impossible choice over the coming days involving preserving the nation's honor and losing a major partner like the United States. Zelenskyy acknowledged that it faces an extremely challenging period in its history.

Ukrainian Negotiating Delegation Formed for Upcoming Meetings

Speaking on Saturday, the president said that real or respectable resolution was always based on assured safety and fairness. He announced a delegation, appointed by presidential decree, that would soon meet its US counterparts in Switzerland, led by his chief of staff Yermak.

A additional delegate of the Ukrainian delegation, ex-defense head and security council official Rustem Umerov, said there would be discussions with the US "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."

International Response and Concerns

The Ukrainian president has attempted to engage constructively with a White House apparently intent to end the conflict on the Kremlin’s one-sided terms. He has emphasized that he will not surrender Ukraine’s sovereignty or disregard the constitutional framework that protects the country’s current borders.

At a meeting in South Africa, G20 leaders and EU representatives released a joint statement pushing back on the proposed deal, stating it requires "additional work". The statement indicated that EU and Nato members must be involved regarding certain clauses, that exclude Kyiv’s Nato membership and put conditions on its European Union membership.

Public Opinion in Kyiv

Responses from Ukrainians to the text, drawn up by Putin’s envoy and a US delegate, has been overwhelmingly hostile. Analysts argued it outlined a plan for further Russian aggression: not only of Ukraine but of other parts of Europe too.

Nayyem, a journalist and politician involved in Ukraine’s 2014 pro-democracy Maidan revolution, said it drew comparisons with Chamberlain’s infamous Munich deal. The proposal came from the same "recognisable genre", where the affected party is asked to outline its own surrender for broader convenience.

In a Facebook post, Nayyem expressed he was outraged by its "full" amnesty for Russian war crimes. It was an insult those who sought shelter in Bucha or Mariupol – sites of civilian executions – and for those whose children had been forcibly deported to Russia. A deeply cynical deal, he stated.

In an interview in Kyiv’s Golden Gate metro station, Sariskyi, 21, said that Moscow has attempted to control Ukraine politically and territorially over many years. It conceded very little 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.

Should Ukraine accept the terms Kyiv would be forced 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 Viewpoints from Ukrainian Citizens

Another passenger, teenager Sofia Barchan, said that the country would "keep strong" without American support. "We will fight for as long as it takes. Our territory will remain our territory, including Crimea and the east. It belongs to Ukraine." She expressed Zelenskyy was a "smart person" and forecasted he would not give up Ukrainian land.

Speaking during rainfall, near a historical monument, Ivanovna said her appreciation to Trump for his attempts to broker peace. She suggested 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 proposed.

European Leaders Criticize the Proposal

Previous European leaders have roundly condemned this proposal. Ex-PM of Finland Sanna Marin called it a disaster, affecting not just Ukraine but for "all of the democratic world". She warned if Western nations display vulnerability – as it did in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea – "more aggression and conflicts" 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 now takes Putin’s side. Europe faces a choice between compromise and principles. A critical juncture for the European Union."