WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Thursday (today) will preside over the first meeting of his “Board of Peace,” an initiative that has drawn praise from Trump allies but also criticism from countries worried that it will undermine the United Nations.

What is ‘Board of Peace’?

Trump first proposed the board last September when he announced his plan to end Israel’s war in Gaza. He later made clear the board’s remit would be expanded beyond Gaza to tackle other conflicts worldwide, with Trump as its chair.

Such efforts have traditionally been a role for the United Nations.

Member states would be limited to three-year terms unless they pay $1 billion each to fund the board’s activities and earn permanent membership, its charter said.

The White House in January 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 joined so far?

The board’s official X account has listed over two dozen countries as founding members of the initiative, including Washington’s main Middle Eastern allies.

They include Israel and Saudi Arabia, along with Egypt and Qatar, which helped mediate talks for the Israel-Hamas ceasefire. Others in the region include Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

From elsewhere in the world, there are Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Cambodia, El Salvador, Hungary, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Mongolia, Pakistan, Paraguay, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.

Remaining nations

Washington’s key Western allies, as well as major powers of the Global South such as Brazil, India, Mexico and South Africa, have not accepted an offer to join.

Leaders of Britain, the European Union, France, Germany, Norway and Sweden have said they will not join the board.

President Trump rescinded an invitation for Canada last month after he took issue with Prime Minister Mark Carney’s speech in Davos.

Brazil and Mexico have said they will not join the initiative, citing the Palestinian absence from the board. The Vatican has not joined, saying efforts to handle crisis situations should be managed by the United Nations.

China and Russia, both veto-wielding members of the United Nations Security Council, have not joined.

Board’s powers

The UN Security Council passed a US-drafted resolution recognising the board in November, welcoming it as a transitional and temporary administration “that will set the framework, and coordinate funding for the redevelopment of Gaza” under Trump’s plan until the Palestinian Authority has satisfactorily reformed.

The resolution authorised the board to deploy a temporary International Stabilisation Force in Gaza, while limiting its scope to only Gaza and only through 2027.

The board is required to report on its progress to the 15-member Security Council every six months.

China and Russia abstained, saying the resolution did not give the US a clear role in Gaza’s future.

Beyond Gaza, it remains unclear what legal authority or enforcement tools, if any, the board will have or how it will work with the US and other international organisations.

Under the board’s charter, it will undertake “peace-building functions in accordance with international law.” Its chairman, Trump, will have extensive executive power, including the ability to veto decisions and remove members, subject to some constraints.

Critics take

Rights experts said that Trump overseeing a board to supervise a foreign territory’s affairs resembles a colonial structure, and have criticised the board for not including a Palestinian representative, even though it is meant to supervise the temporary governance of a Palestinian territory.

Critics also pointed out Blair’s inclusion, given his role in the Iraq war and the history of British imperialism in the Middle East.

The board has drawn scrutiny for including countries whose human rights track records have been widely condemned by rights groups, such as some Middle Eastern powers, as well as Belarus and El Salvador.

There has been particular criticism over the inclusion of Israel on a board meant to oversee Gaza’s temporary governance, given that  the Palestinian territory has been left devastated by an Israeli military assault that killed tens of thousands, caused a hunger crisis, internally displaced Gaza’s entire population and led to accusations of war crimes and genocide.

Inaugural meeting

Almost all nations that have joined the board will be at Thursday’s meeting.

More than 20 other nations will attend as observers, a senior US official said. These include close Asian allies Japan and South Korea, along with India and Thailand from elsewhere in the region.

Other observers include Britain and the EU, along with individual member states Austria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.

Norway and Switzerland will also participate in that capacity, as will Mexico and Oman.

Topics to be discussed include Gaza’s reconstruction, humanitarian assistance efforts and deployment of a stabilisation force.