Netanyahu accepts invite to Trump’s Board of Peace; Europe formulating common position |
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accepted US President Donald Trump’s invitation to join the Board of Peace, the premier’s office announced Wednesday, as Sweden and Norway became the latest nations to say they would not be joining, and Spain said European leaders were working to consolidate a common position.
The proposed board would be chaired for life by Trump and start by addressing the Gaza conflict before expanding to other wars, with member countries required to pay a $1 billion fee each to earn permanent membership.
Western diplomats say the board could undermine the work of the United Nations.
Netanyahu has previously criticized Washington’s decision to place senior representatives from Turkey and Qatar on the Board of Peace’s operational arm for Gaza, called the Gaza Executive Board, making it initially unclear whether he would want to legitimize that panel’s makeup by joining the Board of Peace.
Egypt’s foreign ministry said Wednesday that President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi had also accepted an invitation for the board.
Egypt “announces its acceptance of the invitation and its commitment to fulfilling the relevant legal and constitutional procedures,” the statement said, praising Trump for his 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.
Israel and Egypt join Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belarus, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam in accepting.
Invitations to join the board have been addressed to some 60 nations but just a few have so far........