Trump gathers members of Board of Peace for first meeting

Donald Trump’s Board of Peace is set to meet for an inaugural meeting (Evan Vucci/AP)

President Donald Trump will gather members of his Board of Peace for an inaugural meeting that will focus on reconstruction and building an international stabilisation force for war-battered Gaza, where a shaky ceasefire deal persists.

Representatives from more than two dozen countries that have joined the Board, as well as several that have opted not to, will meet on Thursday.

We have the greatest leaders in the world joining the Board of Peace. I think it has the chance to be the most consequential board ever assembled of any kind

Mr Trump announced ahead of the meeting that board members have pledged five billion dollars for reconstruction, a fraction of the estimated 70 billion dollars needed to rebuild the Palestinian territory decimated after two years of war.

Members are expected to unveil commitments of thousands of personnel to international stabilisation and police forces for the territory.

Mr Trump told reporters earlier this week: “We have the greatest leaders in the world joining the Board of Peace. I think it has the chance to be the most consequential board ever assembled of any kind.”

The board was initiated as part of the US president’s 20-point peace plan to end the conflict in Gaza.

Since the October ceasefire, his vision for the board has morphed and he wants it to have an even more ambitious remit — one that will not only complete the Herculean task of bringing lasting peace between Israel and Hamas but will also help resolve conflicts around the globe.

But ahead of the board’s first gathering, the Gaza ceasefire deal remains fragile and Mr Trump’s expanded vision for it has triggered fears the president is looking to create a rival to the United Nations.

Mr Trump earlier this week said he hoped the board would push the UN to “get on the ball”.

“The United Nations has great potential,” he said. “They haven’t lived up to the potential.”

More than 40 countries and the European Union have confirmed they will send officials to Thursday’s meeting, according to a senior administration official.

Germany, Italy, Norway and Switzerland are among more than a dozen countries that have not joined the board but are expected to attend as observers, the official said.

The UN Security Council held a high-level meeting on the ceasefire deal and Israel’s efforts to expand control in the West Bank.

The UN Security Council moved a meeting so as not to clash with Mr Trump’s Board of Peace gathering (Leon Neal/PA)

The UN session in New York was originally scheduled for Thursday but was moved up after Mr Trump announced the board’s meeting for the same date and it became clear that it would complicate travel plans for diplomats planning to attend both.

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin told reporters earlier this week that “at the international level, it should above all be the UN that manages these crisis situations”.

The Trump administration pushed back on the Vatican’s concerns.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “This president has a very bold and ambitious plan and vision to rebuild and reconstruct Gaza, which is well underway because of the Board of Peace.

“This is a legitimate organisation where there are tens of member countries from around the world.”

Mike Waltz, the US ambassador to the UN, also pushed back on sceptical allies, saying the board is “not talking, it is doing”.

“We are hearing the chattering class criticising the structure of the board, that it’s unconventional, that it’s unprecedented,” Mr Waltz said. “Again, the old ways were not working.”

Central to Thursday’s discussions will be creating an armed international stabilisation force to keep security and ensure the disarmament of the militant Hamas group, a key demand of Israel and a cornerstone of the ceasefire deal.

Only Indonesia has offered a firm commitment to Mr Trump for the proposed force (Gian Ehrenzeller/AP)

But thus far, only Indonesia has offered a firm commitment to Mr Trump for the proposed force and Hamas has provided little confidence that it is willing to move forward on disarmament.

The administration is “under no illusions on the challenges regarding demilitarisation” but has been encouraged by what mediators have reported back, according to a US official.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto pledged to work closely with other leading Islamic countries invited by Mr Trump to “join in the endeavours to try to achieve lasting peace in Palestine”.

“We recognise there are still obstacles to be overcome, but my position is at least we have to try, and we have to do our best,” he said at an event at the US Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, where he met with members of the business community.

On Thursday, updates are expected from the Gaza Executive Board, the operational arm of the board, about its efforts to create a functioning government system and services for the territory, according to an official.

In addition to Mr Trump, the official said other speakers at the conference would include Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Mr Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, his son-in-law Jared Kushner, former British Prime Minister Sir Tony Blair, the executive board’s high representative Nickolay Mladenov, and Mr Waltz.

Michael Hanna, US programme director at the International Crisis Group, a non-profit group focused on preventing conflicts, suggested the scepticism some US allies are showing is not unwarranted.

Mr Hanna said: “Without any clear authorisation for the expansion of its mandate beyond Gaza, it is unsurprising that many US allies and partners have chosen to decline Trump’s offer to join the board.

“Instead, many of the states most invested in Gaza’s future have signed up with the hope of focusing US attention and encouraging Trump himself to use the influence and leverage he has with Israel.”