Trump convenes his Board of Peace

President Donald Trump convenes his Board of Peace on Thursday with representatives from more than 40 countries and observers from a dozen more. The inaugural meeting’s focus is reconstruction and building an international stabilization force for a war-battered Gaza, where a shaky ceasefire deal persists.

Trump says board members have pledged $5 billion for reconstruction, a fraction of the estimated $70 billion needed to rebuild the Palestinian territory. Members also are expected to commit thousands of personnel to international stabilization and police forces, amid fears that Trump is seeking to create a rival to the United Nations.

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Vatican says the UN should remain paramount

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin told reporters earlier this week that “at the international level it should above all be the U.N. that manages these crisis situations.”

The Trump administration on Wednesday pushed back: “This president has a very bold and ambitious plan and vision to rebuild and reconstruct Gaza, which is well underway because of the Board of Peace,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said. “This is a legitimate organization where there are tens of member countries from around the world.”

And Mike Waltz, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., said board is “not talking, it is doing.”

“We are hearing the chattering class criticizing the structure of the board, that it’s unconventional, that it’s unprecedented,” Waltz said. “Again, the old ways were not working.”

The Board and the United Nations

Trump said this week he hopes the board would push the U.N. to “get on the ball.”

“The United Nations has great potential,” he said. “They haven’t lived up to the potential.”

UN Security Council members blast Israel’s West Bank plans on eve of Trump’s Board of Peace meeting

Members of the United Nations Security Council are calling for Gaza ceasefire deal to become permanent, and blasting Israeli efforts to expand control in the West Bank as a threat to prospects of a two-state solution. They met Wednesday on the eve of Trump’s first Board of Peace gathering to discuss the future of the Palestinian territories.

Countries that have said they’ll join

Include Argentina, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belarus, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Egypt, El Salvador, Hungary, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kosovo, Morocco, Mongolia, Pakistan, Paraguay, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.

Trump’s vision for the board

It has morphed since the group was initiated as part of the president’s 20-point peace plan to end the conflict in Gaza. Since the October ceasefire, Trump wants it to have an even more ambitious remit — one that will not only complete the Herculean task of bringing lasting peace between Israel and Hamas but will also help resolve conflicts around the globe.

How to disarm Hamas

These questions are central to the discussions. A key demand of Israel and a cornerstone of the ceasefire deal is the creation of an armed international stabilization force to keep security and ensure the disarmament of the militant Hamas group.

Thus far, only Indonesia has offered a firm commitment to Trump for the proposed force. And Hamas has provided little confidence that it is willing to move forward on disarmament.

 

PHOTO- US President Donald Trump walks on the podium after a signing ceremony of his Board of Peace initiative at the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)