President Donald Trump is eager to be recognized as a peacemaker. His administration obliged Wednesday by renaming the building that houses the U.S. Institute of Peace in downtown Washington.
“Donald J. Trump” is now emblazoned in several places on what has often been dubbed the Peace building, and officials said the building would now be known as the “Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace.”
The move was made a day before Trump hosted leaders from Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo at the building to sign a White House-brokered peace deal between the two countries. Speaking as the event got underway Thursday, Trump said he was honored that the building had been renamed for him and marveled at the new signage.
“Boy, that is beautiful,” Trump said, thanking Secretary of State Marco Rubio for putting his name on the building. Democratsand some human rights advocates have criticized the rebranding, calling it inappropriate given the president’s threats to attack other countries, his administration’s lethal boat strikes and other activities that they characterized as hardly peaceable.
Thursday’s deal signing between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo also comes amid an uptick in fighting this week in eastern Congo, observers said, warning that true peace in the region remains elusive.
Trump has touted his work to settle global conflicts this year, and he and his allies have repeatedly stumped for more recognition, particularly after the Nobel Peace Prize eluded his grasp this year. Congressional Republicans and foreign leaders have already moved to nominate him for next year’s prize, citing Trump’s work to broker peace deals in the Middle East and other global hot spots.
Trump is also widely expected on Friday to receive FIFA’s inaugural Peace Prize, a new award created by the international soccer federation to honor individuals who have “helped to unite people all over the world in peace,” at the nearby Kennedy Center. Gianni Infantino, FIFA’s president and a close Trump ally, attended Thursday’s event at the peace institute.
The administration’s decision to add Trump’s name to the longtime USIP building comes after the president issued an executive order in February seeking to dismantle the organization, an independent nonprofit group created by Congress. The USIP’s president was removed from the headquarters by law enforcement, and the Trump administration fired nearly all of the USIP’s D.C.-based staff. Some diplomats and former staff say they are unsure what the building is used for now.
The USIP and members of its board sued the Trump administration, arguing that the president does not have the authority to fire the group’s leadership or staff, because the USIP was created by Congress. A federal district judge ruled in May that Trump had acted unlawfully, but the order is stayed pending appeal.
George Foote, who serves as the attorney for former USIP leadership and staff, said in a statement that renaming the building “adds insult to injury” as the legal battle over the organization plays out.
“The rightful owners will ultimately prevail and will restore the U.S. Institute of Peace and the building to their statutory purposes,” Foote said.
The building’s new name was first reported by independent journalist Marisa Kabas.
Anna Kelly, a White House spokeswoman, wrote in an email Wednesday that the USIP was “once a bloated, useless entity that blew $50 million per year while delivering no peace.”
“Now, the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, which is both beautifully and aptly named after a President who ended eight wars in less than a year, will stand as a powerful reminder of what strong leadership can accomplish for global stability,” Kelly added.
A person familiar with the decision said the addition of Trump’s name to the building had been “in the works for quite a while.” The move was intended to recognize Trump as a “global peacemaker,” said another person familiar with the move. Both people spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal administration deliberations.
The name change was not publicly announced until Wednesday evening, hours after workers installed Trump’s name in embossed letters near where the “United States Institute of Peace” had been engraved. The White House and the State Department have already begun to refer to the building as the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace — although the president himself did not use the new name when delivering a speech in the building on Thursday. Trump instead referred to the building as the “U.S. Institute of Peace,” appearing to read from prepared remarks.
Thursday’s signing was a “reaffirmation” of the deal that foreign ministers signed in June, but conflict continues to plague the region, said Jason K. Stearns, author of two books on the Democratic Republic of Congo and founder of the nonprofit Congo Research Group at New York University. He said that fighting in eastern Congo had spiked this week — partly because the Rwandan-backed rebel group M23 was positioning itself ahead of separate talks with Congo, in Doha, Qatar. But Rwanda has faced “few consequences” for continuing to back the rebels, Stearns said, including only minor sanctions and no aid cuts.
“For civilians on the ground, the situation hasn’t changed at all. Fighting is ongoing as we speak,” Stearns said. “This peace process — the most optimistic spin — is that we are moving very slowly in the right direction but the major heavy lifting is yet to come.”
Trump has tried to craft a reputation as an international peacemaker this term, touting the peace agreement he helped negotiate between Israel and Hamas over the war in Gaza and promising to bring peace between Ukraine and Russia as he openly lobbied for a Nobel Peace Prize. Other global leaders and advocacy groups, including some seeking to curry favor with the president, have praised his work to settle conflicts and called for him to be honored with the Nobel Peace Prize and other awards.
“Hard to believe, right? Did you ever think I was going to be called a peacemaker?” Trump said in an exchange with a reporter in October. “I did.”
John Hudson contributed to this report.
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