BELFAST, Northern Ireland — Now that Donald Trump’s peace deal has the green light, European powers want a seat at the table.
As the news broke that Israel and Hamas had agreed the first phase of a ceasefire plan, French President Emmanuel Macron sent a rapid call out to other European allies and Arab nations to meet in Paris.
British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul both broke away from a U.K.-hosted summit on the Western Balkans to meet fellow ministers in France.
London, Paris and Berlin are all expected to play a key role in ensuring that Middle Eastern powers know they have the support of European countries in moving toward a ceasefire.
The trio of countries known as the “E3” is likely to argue for a representative on the “Board of Peace,” the body that will oversee the transitional governance of Gaza by a Palestinian committee.
When he announced his 20-point peace plan, Trump said he himself would chair the Board of Peace. The only other member he named was former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who was closely involved in drafting the U.S.-led deal.
British officials stressed that Blair had played a valuable role and had liaised regularly with Keir Starmer’s national security adviser, Jonathan Powell, but that he had not been put forward as a broker by the U.K. government.
One senior British government aide, granted anonymity to speak frankly, said that “there are issues” with Blair in the eyes of other partners in the region as a result of his role in the Iraq war and “there will inevitably be other individuals who have backing of partners and those names have not been put forward yet.”
The E3 would back their own representative on the board, the same aide added.
A German official said many configurations of different countries would be needed to make the peace deal work, but it was “a good sign” that ministers from the E3 nations were coordinating closely in the immediate aftermath of an agreement.
Membership of the peace board is expected to be discussed in Paris, said one person with knowledge of the meeting’s details, who also suggested that Europeans’ position would depend on representation for Palestinians.
Talks will address the implementation phase of the peace deal, as Israeli forces prepare to withdraw in advance of Hamas releasing its hostages.
Germany’s Wadephul told reporters this would need to be supported by a resolution of the U.N. Security Council — of which the U.K. and France are permanent members — which could provide security guarantees and set up a temporary administration in Gaza.
The same senior British aide quoted above said: “We need to try and hold each country to say what they will do. Security governance arrangements need to be in place and we can play our part in doing that.”
A second U.K. official argued Britain and France had played a role in securing this week’s breakthrough, saying “we wouldn’t be here” without their recognition of Palestinian statehood — even though Trump, who pushed through the plan — has always brushed off its significance.
Nette Nöstlinger and Clea Caulcutt contributed to this report.
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