Trump launches 'Board of Peace' seen as bid to control Gaza

US President Donald Trump has launched a new “Board of Peace” under the banner of supporting ceasefire in the besieged Gaza Strip, a move mostly seen as an attempt to weaken the United Nations and replace multilateral diplomacy with US-dominated decision-making.

Trump on Thursday launched his so-called “Board of Peace”, initially presented as a mechanism to shore up Gaza’s fragile ceasefire but openly framed by him as a tool with far broader ambitions.

“Once this board is completely formed, we can do pretty much whatever we want to do. And we'll do it in conjunction with the United Nations,” said the American president, while again portraying the UN as an underused institution in need of US-led direction.

In September last year and at the 80th UN General Assembly, Trump slammed the UN, claiming the world body “wasn’t there for us” in helping resolve conflicts.

“What is the purpose of the United Nations? The UN has such tremendous potential … but it's not even coming close to living up to that potential,” he asked at the time.

Chaired by Trump himself, the board includes US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the US Gaza negotiators Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, as well as former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Trump, who claims he wants the board to address challenges beyond the stuttering Gaza ceasefire, invited dozens of world leaders and demanded that permanent members contribute $1 billion each.

While Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Indonesia joined, traditional US allies and major powers reacted cautiously, fearing the board could erode the UN’s central role in diplomacy.

Apart from the United States, none of the other permanent members of the UN Security Council has committed. France declined, Britain said it was not joining for now, and China has stayed silent, while Russia said late on Wednesday it was studying the plan after Trump claimed it would participate, with President Vladimir Putin stating that Moscow was ready to pay $1 billion from frozen US assets “to support the Palestinian people.”

Although the board was endorsed by a UN Security Council resolution as part of Trump’s Gaza plan, UN spokesperson Rolando Gomez stressed that UN engagement would be strictly limited to that framework.

Despite Trump’s long-standing hostility toward multilateral institutions, he claimed the initiative could reshape global governance.

“There’s tremendous potential with the United Nations, and I think the combination of the Board of Peace with the kind of people we have here ... could be something very, very unique for the world,” he said.

Netanyahu joins familiar circle of war at heart of Trump’s Gaza plan

Netanyahu’s office says the Israeli premier has agreed to join Trump’s so-called Board of Peace, despite disagreements over the advisory body’s composition and mandate.

Israel, Argentina and Hungary, all closely aligned with Trump, have said they would join, reflecting alliances more than genuine international consensus.

The board’s immediate focus is Gaza, where the October ceasefire has repeatedly broken down amid Israeli attacks and a deepening humanitarian crisis within the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.

Kushner said reconstruction funding and Hamas disarmament would dominate the next phase, warning, “If Hamas doesn't demilitarize, that would be what holds this plan back.”

“The next 100 days we're going to continue to just be heads down and focused on making sure this is implemented,” he added.

The Palestinian technocratic committee leader, Ali Shaath, said the Rafah crossing would reopen next week, but both Israel and Hamas continue to accuse each other of violations – while each side rejects the other's accusations - underscoring how Washington’s heavily branded initiative has done little so far to deliver real peace.

Although the first phase of the truce is struggling, the next stage will need to tackle far more difficult long-term challenges that have stalled previous talks, including Hamas disarmament, Gaza’s security management, and Israel’s eventual withdrawal.

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