US President Donald Trump has invited dozens of world leaders to join his Peace Board initiative aimed at resolving global conflicts, but diplomats say it could harm the work of the United Nations.
While some traditional US allies have responded cautiously, and in some cases rejected Trump’s offer, others, including nations that have long had strained ties with Washington such as Belarus, have accepted.
What is Trump’s peace initiative?
Trump first proposed it in September, when he announced his plan to end the Gaza war. He later made it clear that the junta’s mandate would expand beyond Gaza to address other conflicts around the world.
Trump will be the inaugural president of the Council, which will be charged with promoting peace around the world and working to resolve conflicts, according to a copy of the draft letter seen by Reuters.
Member States will have a term limited to three years, unless they pay 1 billion dollars each to finance the activities of the body and become permanent members.
The White House has named US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner as members of the initiative’s founding Executive Board.
Which countries have accepted so far?
Witkoff said Wednesday that up to 25 countries had so far accepted the invitation to join the Peace Board.
Continue reading: Trump proposes a new ‘Peace Board’ for the Gaza Government, chaired by him
These include Middle Eastern allies such as Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt. NATO members Türkiye and Hungary, whose nationalist leaders have cultivated good personal ties with Trump, have also agreed to participate.
Others who have accepted are Armenia and Azerbaijan, which reached a peace agreement with the mediation of the United States last August after meeting with Trump in the White House.
More controversial is the case of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, long shunned by the West for his country’s poor human rights record and support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, who has accepted Trump’s invitation, which comes amid greater rapprochement between Washington and Minsk.
Russia, which has also seen its frosty relations with Washington improve markedly as Trump courted President Vladimir Putin while accusing kyiv of blocking efforts to end the Ukraine war, has not yet said whether it will join.
Neither has China, which has often been at odds with Trump but recently reached a delicate trade truce.
Russia and China are traditionally strong supporters of the United Nations, and are both veto-wielding members of the UN Security Council, so they are likely to be wary of any initiative that could be seen as affecting the world body.
Trump, who has often criticized the U.N. as ineffective, this week downplayed concerns that he might want his council to replace the world body, saying: “I think you have to let the U.N. continue because its potential is so great.”
Which countries have refused to join or have not yet committed?
The Peace Board initiative, which comes amid a growing transatlantic rift over Greenland, tariffs and other issues, has prompted a cautious response from some close U.S. allies who are often uncomfortable with Trump’s belligerent, unilateralist, “America First” approach to international diplomacy.
Norway and Sweden have declined their invitation, while Italy’s Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said joining seemed problematic. Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera reported that joining a group led by a country’s leader would violate the Italian Constitution.
France also intends to reject the invitation, according to a source close to President Emmanuel Macron, prompting Trump to threaten to impose 200% tariffs on French wines and champagnes unless Paris joins.
Canada said it has agreed “in principle” to join, but that the details were still being worked out. Other key US allies such as Britain, Germany and Japan have yet to take a clear public stance, although a German government spokesman said Chancellor Friedrich Merz would not attend the council’s signing ceremony at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Ukraine has said its diplomats are studying the invitation, but President Volodymyr Zelensky said it is difficult for him to imagine the possibility of forming part of a junta with Russia after four years of war.
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What power will the board have?
It remains unclear what legal authority or enforcement tools the Peace Board will have or how it will work with the United Nations and other international organizations.
The statute says its president, Trump, will have broad executive power, including the ability to veto decisions and remove members, with some limitations.
According to its statutes, the Peace Board will perform “peacebuilding functions in accordance with international law.”
The White House has also announced the creation of a Gaza Executive Board to support a transitional Palestinian administration in the strip. It is unclear how the founding Executive Board and the Gaza Executive Board, which share some members, will function in practice.
With information from Reuters
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