Photo: EPA
Only one permanent member of the UN Security Council — the United States — signed the charter.
The Peace Council, chaired by U.S. President Donald Trump, was officially established during the World Economic Forum in Davos. Representatives of 20 countries signed the organization’s charter, according to BBC, Bloomberg, and Reuters.
Initially, the Council will focus on the war in Gaza, but later, Trump said, it could expand to other conflicts. Diplomats have voiced concerns that the new body could undermine the work of the United Nations, but the U.S. president assured that it would cooperate with the UN.
“Once this council is fully formed, we will be able to do practically whatever we want. And we will do it jointly with the United Nations,”
Trump said.
Trump invited dozens of other world leaders to join the Council, although major global powers and traditional U.S. allies declined. Representatives of 19 countries attended the charter-signing ceremony in Davos, including Argentine President Javier Milei, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev, and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Delegations from Bahrain, Morocco, Bulgaria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Uzbekistan were also present.
In total, 35 countries have committed to joining the Peace Council, including Belarus and Israel. Invitations were also sent to Russia, China, and Ukraine. France, the United Kingdom, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, and Canada declined to join.
As a reminder, permanent membership in the Council is available in exchange for a $1 billion contribution. Regular members will receive mandates of no more than three years, while permanent members will have no time limit.
