Eight prominent Muslim countries jointly announced their decisions to join US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace on Wednesday, as Trump acknowledged some countries may have difficulties joining without parliamentary approval.
Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates will each appoint a representative to sit on the panel of world leaders, their foreign ministers announced in a joint statement.
While Egypt, Pakistan, and the UAE had already announced plans to join the Board of Peace, the other five countries had been mulling the decision. Trump badly wanted Saudi Arabia to join, publicly urging its crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, to do so, but Riyadh was mum until now.
The Board of Peace was given a UN Security Council mandate to oversee the postwar management of Gaza until the end of 2027, though the US is aiming to use the panel for conflict resolution around the globe.
The proposed board would be chaired for life by Trump, with member countries required to pay a $1 billion fee each to earn permanent membership.
It is only expected to meet a handful of times each year, and the panel more involved in decision-making regarding Gaza will be the Gaza Executive Board, unveiled on Friday. That body also includes representatives from Turkey, Qatar, the UAE, and the US.
In the Muslim countries’ statement announcing their decision to join the Board of Peace, they reiterated their support for “advancing a just and lasting peace grounded in the Palestinian right to self-determination and statehood in accordance with international law, thereby paving the way for security and stability for all countries and peoples of the region.”
Trump acknowledged on Wednesday that some countries cannot join his Board of Peace right away, as they need parliamentary approval to join an international body that Washington appears keen on using to bypass the United Nations.
“Some need parliamentary approval,” Trump said in remarks to reporters at the beginning of his meeting with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
However, he insisted that many countries are interested in joining, including ones that were not invited to do so.
Trump also revealed to reporters that Russian President Vladimir Putin accepted his invitation to join the Board of Peace.
“I have some controversial people on it, but these are people who get the job done. These are people who have tremendous influence,” the US president said. “We want all nations where people have control and power.”
“If I put all babies on the board, there wouldn’t be very much. So he was invited. He’s accepted,” Trump said of Putin.
The board is “going to get a lot of work done that the United Nations should have done, and we’ll work with the United Nations,” he added.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff said earlier on Wednesday that 20 to 25 leaders had already accepted invitations to join the Board of Peace, which is slated to hold a signing ceremony on Thursday in Davos.
Invitations to join the board have been addressed to some 60 nations.
Israel, Egypt, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belarus, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam are among those who have accepted.
Some Western diplomats say the board could undermine the work of the UN.
This concern was shared by Slovenia’s Prime Minister Robert Golob, who said on Wednesday that his country would not accept the invitation.
“The main concern is that the committee’s mandate is too broad and that it could dangerously undermine the international order based on the United Nations Charter,” the N1 news web portal quoted Golob as saying.
“Although we find any initiative that can calm the situation in the Middle East to be commendable, this invitation dangerously encroaches on the broader international order and not just on pacification in Gaza,” he said.
N1 cited Golob as saying he will not attend the signing of the initiative’s founding charter on Thursday, but will instead attend the meeting of the European Council leaders in Brussels.
Meanwhile, the Vatican’s top diplomat revealed that Pope Leo XIV was invited to join the board, but said a final decision has not been made on his participation.
“The pope has received an invitation, and we are considering what to do,” said Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin. “I believe it will be something that requires a bit of time for consideration before giving a response.”
Sweden, Norway, and Italy have refused to join, while Spain has said European leaders were working to consolidate a common position.
The board’s charter, obtained by The Times of Israel, makes no mention of Gaza and appears to take a swipe at the UN, saying that the new board should have “the courage to depart from approaches and institutions that have too often failed.”
The document was attached to invitations to join the board that were sent to dozens of world leaders on Friday.
When asked by a reporter on Tuesday if the board should replace the United Nations, Trump said: “It might.”
