President Donald Trump’s invitations for world leaders to join his so-called Board of Peace have prompted a range of responses, from immediate displays of willingness to hedging, wait-and-see statements from bewildered officials seeking more time to deliberate over the particulars.
In Hungary, Belarus and Uzbekistan, leaders rushed to accept the president’s invitation. Countries as disparate as Canada, Russia and China were among the many that equivocated, citing a need to study the proposal. France, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Slovenia declined to participate in the board as it is currently formulated — eliciting a furious reaction from Trump, who threatened to impose punitive 200 percent tariffs against French wine.
The body, initially envisioned to shepherd the peace process in Gaza, has since morphed into a broader initiative aimed at resolving thorny global conflicts. Over the weekend, invites for founding member positions went out to countries around the world.
“Our effort will bring together a distinguished group of nations ready to shoulder the noble responsibility of building LASTING PEACE,” read the invitation sent to Argentine President Javier Milei. “We will convene our wonderful and committed partners, most of whom are HIGHLY Respected World Leaders, in the near future.”
Milei, who is among nearly two dozen world leaders to have already accepted the invitation, shared Trump’s letter on social media Saturday. More than 50 countries are known to have been contacted by the White House, either through statements made by Trump or officials representing recipient countries. A full tally of countries solicited for a seat on the board was not made public.
The proposed charter and the list of invitees — which includes Russian President Vladimir Putin — have raised concerns among some of the prospective members.
A permanent seat will cost countries $1 billion, though U.S. officials said the payment was voluntary and not an entry fee.
“Membership does not carry any mandatory funding obligation beyond whatever a state or partner chooses to contribute voluntarily,” said a U.S. official speaking on the condition of anonymity under requirements set by the administration.
Canada’s finance minister said the country would not pay $1 billion for a permanent seat. Canada accepted the invitation on principle, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said separately, though he added that Canada’s participation would be conditioned entirely on the resumption of a “full flow” of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky received invitations to join the board, raising questions about the prospect of the two countries, which are at war, collaborating in the context of an international peacemaking body.
“Russia is our enemy. Belarus is their ally,” Zelensky said on Tuesday. “It is very difficult for me to imagine how we and Russia can be together in this or that council.” Officials in Poland raised similar concerns.
Trump on Wednesday said that Putin had accepted his invitation to the board, though Putin clarified afterward that he had not and the Kremlin was still studying the proposal.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that he would join, a reversal after he levied harsh criticism of the composition of the board, which is expected to include representatives from Turkey and Qatar. Israeli officials had previously denounced both countries, the former for its condemnation of Israel’s conduct in the war in Gaza and the latter for harboring Hamas officials.
The board was initially conceived to oversee the implementation of the ceasefire and peace process in Gaza. The United Nations Security Council authorized the establishment of the board as a “transitional administration” in Gaza for the purpose of coordinating reconstruction efforts.
But the board’s charter, obtained over the weekend by the Times of Israel, makes no reference to the conflict in Gaza. “The Board of Peace is an international organization that seeks to promote stability, restore dependable and lawful governance, and secure enduring peace in areas affected or threatened by conflict,” it reads.
Some invitees have balked at the prospect of joining an international body that might supplant the work of the United Nations. Trump on Tuesday said he wanted the United Nations to continue its work, but took a swipe at the international organization, saying he expected it to “do more.”
“I wish we didn’t need a Board of Peace, but the United Nations, and, you know, with all the wars I settled, United Nations never helped me on one war,” Trump told journalists at a White House briefing on Tuesday. He added on Wednesday that the Board of Peace would work with the U.N., but did not offer any details.
The Trump administration earlier this month withdrew from 66 international organizations, many of them U.N.-related agencies, commissions and advisory panels that focus on climate, labor, migration and other issues the administration has categorized as catering to diversity. Daniel Forti, head of U.N. affairs at the International Crisis Group, said at the time that the move was “a very clear vision of wanting international cooperation on Washington’s own terms.”
The work of the Board of Peace will be “operationalized” by an executive board including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, the White House announced Friday.
“Each Executive Board member will oversee a defined portfolio critical to Gaza’s stabilization and long-term success, including, but not limited to, governance capacity-building, regional relations, reconstruction, investment attraction, large-scale funding, and capital mobilization,” the White House said.
Adam Taylor and Amanda Coletta contributed to this report.
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