President Trump launches a $1 billion ‘Board of Peace’ at Davos, featuring Putin and Netanyahu, as he prepares for Ukraine ceasefire talks.
DAVOS: US President Donald Trump will showcase his new “Board of Peace” at the World Economic Forum on Thursday. The body, with a $1 billion price tag for permanent membership, is intended to resolve international conflicts.
Trump will host a signing ceremony for the board’s founding charter. Its controversial membership includes Russian President Vladimir Putin, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Hungary’s Viktor Orban.
“This is the greatest board ever assembled,” Trump, who chairs the board, told reporters. He acknowledged the controversial figures, stating, “these are people who get the job done.”
Originally conceived to oversee Gaza’s reconstruction, the board’s charter is not limited to that conflict. This has sparked concerns it is intended to rival the United Nations, a notion Trump supported by saying it would do work “the United Nations should have done.”
Key US allies like Britain and France have expressed skepticism, with the UK confirming it will not attend the ceremony. However, about 35 world leaders have committed out of roughly 50 invitations, according to a senior Trump administration official.
The board’s launch follows Trump’s frustration at not winning the Nobel Peace Prize. It also comes a day after he backed off threats related to Greenland, announcing a “framework of a future deal” with NATO.
Trump said he would meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Davos after the ceremony to discuss a ceasefire. A meeting is scheduled for 1:00 pm local time, according to the Ukrainian presidency.
Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, said talks to end the war had made a “lot of progress” and were down to one solvable issue. Witkoff is due to meet Putin in Moscow later on Thursday.
Zelensky has previously worried that Trump’s focus on acquiring Greenland would divert attention from Russia’s invasion. Trump insists the mineral-rich Arctic island is vital for US and NATO security.
