US President Donald Trump has secured backing from Egypt and several Gulf and Muslim majority states for a new US led “Board of Peace” aimed at advancing a peace framework for Gaza.
Trump met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el Sisi on Wednesday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. According to officials, the leaders discussed regional issues including efforts to bring Egypt and Ethiopia together over the long running dispute surrounding Ethiopia’s Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, as well as the proposed Board of Peace overseeing a Gaza peace deal.
Later on Wednesday, Egypt’s foreign ministry confirmed that Sisi had accepted Trump’s invitation to join the body.
“Egypt announces its acceptance of the invitation and its commitment to fulfilling the relevant legal and constitutional procedures,” the ministry said in a statement, while praising Trump’s Middle East policies.
“Egypt expresses its support for the Board of Peace’s mission for the second phase of the comprehensive plan to end the conflict in Gaza,” it added.
Support for the initiative has also come from Saudi Arabia and several other Muslim majority countries. Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry said Riyadh and seven others had agreed to join Trump’s Board of Peace.
In a joint statement, Saudi Arabia announced the “shared decision” by the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates to participate in the body, which is to be chaired by Trump. The ministers said they supported his “peace efforts” related to the Gaza conflict.
Invitations were reportedly sent to dozens of world leaders requesting $1 billion for a permanent seat on the board, although the Saudi statement made no reference to any financial commitment.
The board was initially presented as a mechanism to oversee Gaza’s reconstruction, but its charter does not appear to limit its mandate to the territory. It is instead framed as a broader peace body that could rival the United Nations, a prospect that has drawn criticism from some US allies, including France.
The development comes amid heightened regional tensions, including strains between the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, both of which have sought closer ties with the Trump administration through investment pledges and business deals.
France has indicated it will not participate in the initiative. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accepted an invitation to join, according to his office.
Netanyahu has nonetheless raised objections to the inclusion of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Qatari diplomat Ali Al Thawadi on a proposed “Gaza Executive Board” operating under the wider Board of Peace.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
About the Author
