US President Donald Trump has announced the formation of his “Board of Peace”, inaugurating the second phase of his 20-point peace plan for Gaza.

The board has already caused controversy. Moreover, the implementation of the second phase is set to be more complex and problematic than the first phase that forged a very shaky ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Australia has been invited to join the board. It has welcomed the advent of the board and second phase. But it has yet to state if it will accept the invitation. There are a number of issues for the Albanese government to consider here.

From the scant information available, the Board of Peace is to be chaired permanently by Trump, with a veto power. It is to be the ultimate decision-making authority in overseeing the application of the second phase.

Its initial members are largely made up of Trump loyalists, some of them well-known for their pro-Israel stance. In addition to Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Special Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff, they include former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. It is not yet clear to what extent Israel has been consulted on the board or what its role will be.

Many Palestinians and their supporters distrust Blair for his “pro-Israeli” stance, which was evidenced when he headed the Quartet (comprised of the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations). The Quartet was set up in 2002 to mediate the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, but was abandoned as ineffective in 2012. Blair is also widely criticised for his role in the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, which left the country in a mess.

No Palestinian is appointed........

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