By JULIA FRANKEL, Associated Press
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that he has agreed to join U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace in a departure from an earlier stance when his office criticized the makeup of the board’s committee tasked with overseeing Gaza.
Norway and Sweden, meanwhile, said they would not be joining the board at this stage, following in the footsteps of France, which has expressed concern the board could seek to replace the United Nations as the mediator in global conflicts.
Chaired by Trump, the board was originally envisaged as a small group of world leaders overseeing the Gaza ceasefire plan. The Trump administration’s ambitions have since expanded into a more sprawling concept, with Trump extending invitations to dozens of nations and hinting the board will soon broker global conflicts.
Trump headed for the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, where he is expected to provide more details about the board.
Israel, Azerbaijan and Kosovo say yes, Norway and Sweden say no
Netanyahu’s office had previously said the composition of the Gaza executive committee — which includes Turkey, Israel’s key regional rival — was not coordinated with the Israeli government and ran “contrary to its policy,” without clarifying its objections.
Netanyahu’s decision to join the board could now put him in conflict with some of the far-right allies in his coalition, such as Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has criticized the board and called for Israel to take unilateral responsibility for Gaza’s future.
Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev said Wednesday he was also joining, as did Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani.
Norway’s state secretary, Kristoffer Thoner, said in a statement Wednesday that Norway would not join the board because it “raises a number of questions that requires further dialogue with the United States.” He said Norway would not attend the signing ceremony in Davos.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on the sidelines of Davos on Wednesday that his country isn’t signing up for the board as the text currently stands, Swedish news agency TT reported. Sweden hasn’t yet formally responded.
Much of Western Europe, Russia and China have not said whether they will join
Those who previously joined the board are the United Arab Emirates, Armenia, Morocco, Vietnam, Belarus, Hungary, Kazakhstan and Argentina. Bahrain and Egypt said Wednesday they would also join.
Invitation letters from Trump also have been sent to the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia, Ukraine, China, Egypt, Paraguay, Turkey, India, Slovenia, Croatia, Thailand and the European Union’s executive arm.
There are many unanswered questions. It was not immediately clear how many other leaders would receive invitations and how broad the board’s mandate will be. When asked by a reporter on Tuesday if the board should replace the United Nations, Trump said: “It might.”
The makeup of the board
Under the ceasefire deal, the board’s Gaza executive committee will be in charge of implementing the tough second phase of the agreement. That includes deploying an international security force, disarming the Hamas group and rebuilding the war-devastated territory. It will also supervise a newly appointed committee of Palestinian technocrats who will be running Gaza’s day-to-day affairs.
The White House says its members include Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan; Qatari diplomat Ali Al-Thawadi; Hassan Rashad, director of Egypt’s General Intelligence Agency; Emirati minister Reem Al-Hashimy; Israeli businessman Yakir Gabay; and Sigrid Kaag, the Netherlands’ former deputy prime minister and a Mideast expert.
Nickolay Mladenov, a former Bulgarian politician and U.N. Mideast envoy, is to serve as the Gaza executive board’s representative overseeing day-to-day matters.
Separate from the Gaza executive committee, the founding executive committee’s members include U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Witkoff, Kushner, Blair, Rowan, World Bank President Ajay Banga and Trump’s deputy national security adviser Robert Gabriel.
Associated Press writers Matthew Lee in Washington and Catherine Gaschka in Paris contributed to this report.
