Donald Trump’s controversial Board of Peace will hold its first meeting in Washington on Thursday to discuss Gaza’s reconstruction.
Announced last month at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the board was conceived as a temporary body linked to the Gaza ceasefire and reconstruction.
However, it has evolved into an international institution under Trump’s personal control and has an unclear role, prompting criticism that he wants the body to ultimately assume the function currently undertaken by the United Nations in worldwide conflict resolution.
“It’s going to be the most prestigious board ever formed,” Trump promised at Davos. “I have some controversial people on it but these are people that get the job done, these are people that have tremendous influence.”
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Russia’s president Vladimir Putin is one of the more than 20 members of the board, mostly heads of state, who have agreed to pay the $1 billion required for a permanent seat. Bulgaria and Hungary are the only European states to have accepted an invitation to join the board.
Israel’s prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu was quick to accept an invitation but foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar will attend the inaugural meeting, raising speculation that Netanyahu, in an election year, wants to avoid a potentially damaging photo opportunity alongside representatives of Turkey and Qatar.
Other countries on the board include Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Vietnam, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.
The board’s charter gives Trump veto power and the right to name his successor.
It is not clear how much oversight the body will exert over Gaza and several subcommittees have already been set up to co-ordinate work on the ground.
An executive board – whose appointees include Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, former British prime minister Tony Blair and US secretary of state Marco Rubio – will oversee the board’s operations in more detail.
[ Netanyahu says Israel has joined Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’Opens in new window ]
A Palestinian technocratic committee, with most members linked to the Palestinian Authority and/or the Palestinian political party Fatah, is tasked with running the day to day affairs in Gaza.
Trump said board members have pledged more than $5 billion towards rebuilding Gaza and will commit thousands of personnel to the international stabilisation force (ISF) and police forces for the territory.
Indonesia’s military said on Sunday that up to 8,000 of its troops are expected to be ready by the end of June for a potential deployment to Gaza. Morocco, Albania and Greece are also reportedly ready to send troops.
The international force is expected to supervise the ceasefire line in Gaza which divides the eastern zone, under Israeli control, from the Palestinian zone along the Mediterranean coast. It is possible that the force will handle other border-related issues.
None of the countries committing troops are ready to take part in efforts to disarm Hamas.
[ McEntee ‘doesn’t see’ Ireland joining Donald Trump’s Board of PeaceOpens in new window ]
Disarmament is a key stumbling block in the Gaza ceasefire process. Israeli cabinet secretary Yossi Fuchs said this week that Israel plans to present Hamas with a 60-day ultimatum to disarm, and if it does not, the Israeli military will go back to war. His statement came after Netanyahu insisted that Hamas must give up its small arms as part of the disarmament process, including its AK-47 rifles.
Although Hamas has indicated it could consider handing over its heavy weapons to a future Palestinian governing authority, it has repeatedly said that total disarmament is a red line.
Reconstruction in Gaza after the devastating two-year war will be a daunting task. The United Nations, World Bank and European Union estimate that reconstruction of the territory will cost a staggering $70 billion.
Entire neighbourhoods have been reduced to rubble and tens of thousands of war refugees are still living in makeshift tents.
