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U.S. President Donald Trump launched his newly formed “Board of Peace” on an international stage Thursday as more countries responded to his invitation for a seat at the table that will initially aim to rebuild Gaza.
As of Thursday morning, some 35 countries have signed up to join the board, including regional Middle East powers such as Israel, Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, though traditional U.S. allies, namely European countries and Canada, have been reluctant to commit to the initiative or its membership fee.
To secure a permanent seat on the board, which Trump is expected to chair for life, countries will have to pay at least $1 billion US, according to a draft. Other members will have three-year terms.
A White House official told The Associated Press that about 50 countries had been invited, though a number have yet to respond.
While a final list of signatory countries has not yet been determined, here is a look at which countries have accepted, declined or are currently undecided.
The United Arab Emirates, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Morocco and Vietnam were some of the first to publicly join the board.
France was one of the latest countries to decline his offer Thursday, saying the board’s charter does not correspond with a United Nations resolution to resolve the war in Gaza (nor does it mention the Gaza mandate) and some of the charter’s elements were contrary to the UN charter, its Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.
Slovenia’s Prime Minister Robert Golob also declined the invitation, saying that the board “dangerously interferes with the broader international order.”
Moscow, meanwhile, is considering an invitation to join, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has proposed sending $1 billion US to the board from Russian assets frozen in the U.S.
Trump, hosted a signing ceremony for the board in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday. During his closing remarks, Trump noted his own experiences in real estate.
He described Gaza as “this beautiful piece of property” and suggested his push for peace between Israel and Hamas “all began with the location.”
U.S. President Donald Trump has launched his ‘Board of Peace’ with an initial goal of rebuilding Gaza. The 35 signatory countries include regional Middle East powers such as Israel, Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, but traditional U.S. allies have been wary of joining.
The ceremony came as deadly Israeli airstrikes continued in the Gaza Strip on Thursday despite the U.S.-brokered ceasefire truce signed on Oct. 10.
Trump has parlayed the ceasefire into a broader initiative aimed at resolving conflicts globally, leaving some countries hesitant to join with sparse details surrounding its future ambitions.
