France to decline invitation, source says

Netanyahu invited to Trump’s Gaza Board of Peace alongside European, Mideast leaders

Putin invited, wants to ‘clarify all the nuances’; Kremlin allies Belarus, Kazakhstan also offered spots; Hungary’s Orban says he accepted invite; UK, Germany, mulling involvement

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been invited to US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, which would give Israel a seat at the table on a supervisory but largely symbolic body meant to oversee Gaza’s postwar development.

Netanyahu’s office confirmed to The Times of Israel that he or a representative of his choice was invited to the board. If he accepts, Israel will join a growing list of countries that have confirmed receiving invitations. They are from Europe, Asia, Australia, the Americas and the Middle East and span Israel’s allies and adversaries.

At least one country, France, signaled its intention to decline Trump’s invitation.

Also confirming an invitation was Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as the leaders of Belarus and Kazakhstan, both close Russian allies.

Moscow is likewise an ally to Iran and to the ousted Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad. But it has for years tried to balance ties with all major players in the Middle East — including the Palestinians and Israel — and strives for good relations with the Jewish state, home to a large Russian-born community.

The Kremlin has also sought closer relationships with the Gulf states amid growing Western isolation.

“President Putin also received an invitation to join this Board of Peace,” spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists.

Russia was seeking to “clarify all the nuances” of the offer with Washington, he said, without adding if the Kremlin chief was inclined to join.

The Board of Peace, which will act as an oversight body for Gaza and which Trump will chair, will largely be made up of heads of state from around the world. Trump has invited 60 countries to join the board, and permanent membership will be available to those who pay $1 billion.

Israel’s inclusion adds to a complex mosaic of invitees. They include traditional US allies from Europe as well as states that have been adversarial to Israel, such as Turkey, which has hosted some of Hamas’s leaders. India and Pakistan are both invited.

The Board of Peace’s charter does not mention Gaza, suggesting that Trump may want it to address other conflicts as well. But the UN Security Council resolution pertaining to the board that was passed last month restricts its mandate to the Strip, and approves it only until the end of 2027.

The US is aiming to hold the board’s first meeting on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday, officials familiar with the matter have told The Times of Israel. Within the Strip, it will act as an umbrella for a few other governing bodies.

A Turkish representative, as well as one from fellow hostile state Qatar, will sit on the more consequential Gaza Executive Board, which will be more directly involved in overseeing the postwar management of Gaza. Qatar also hosts Hamas’s leadership.

The inclusion of both countries was met with staunch objections from Jerusalem, with Netanyahu’s office saying Saturday that the body’s makeup “was not coordinated with Israel and contradicts its policy.”

After Netanyahu’s statement, an unnamed senior American official was quoted by the Axios news outlet saying, “This is our show, not his show,” and “If he wants us to deal with Gaza, it will have to be our way.”

In the wake of that tiff, Netanyahu convened several meetings Sunday morning with his security cabinet, the full cabinet, and the party chairs in his coalition.

The invitation of Russia to the Board of Peace came after Putin had previously praised Trump’s efforts to resolve conflicts.

“He’s really doing a lot to resolve these complex crises, which have lasted for years, even decades,” Putin said of the US president in October.

Referring to the situation in the Middle East, Putin said: “If we succeed in achieving everything Donald has strived for… it will be a historic event.”

The Kremlin has also repeatedly criticized Israel’s war in Gaza, launched in response to the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, onslaught, and called for restraint.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, an ally of Putin, will join the Board of Peace after accepting an invitation to do so, and wants to contribute to bringing about a stable Middle East peace, his spokesperson said on Monday.

“The head of state sent a letter to the president of the United States expressing sincere gratitude and confirming his agreement to join this new association,” Tokayev’s spokesman, Ruslan Zheldibay, said, noting the country’s “commitment to contribute to the achievement of lasting peace in the Middle East, strengthening interstate trust and global stability.”

The news was first reported by the Tengri news outlet.

Kazakhstan formed diplomatic relations with the Jewish state in 1992, shortly after it broke away from the Soviet Union, and last year joined the Abraham Accords in a symbolic move.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, another close Putin ally, was also invited, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said on Monday. Lukashenko “welcomed” the invitation, said Ruslan Varankov, a spokesperson for the ministry.

Some other European countries have also been invited, including Hungary, which publicly said on Sunday that it had accepted the invitation.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban made the announcement on X, writing, “With President [Donald Trump] comes peace. Another letter has arrived. Hungary’s efforts for peace are being recognised.”

Orban, who has long been close with the US president as well as with Netanyahu, added, “We have, of course, accepted this honourable invitation.”

Separately, the United Kingdom and Germany both acknowledged their invitations on Monday.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that Britain had signaled its willingness to play a role in the second phase of a ceasefire in Gaza when asked about the Board of Peace. Speaking at a press conference, Starmer said Britain was in discussions with its allies on the terms.

Germany thanked Trump for his invitation to the board, saying it would examine what contribution it could make toward the goal of a lasting resolution to the Gaza conflict, a government spokesperson in Berlin said.

The spokesperson told journalists at a regular press conference that the government does not share concerns about Trump’s board possibly undermining the United Nations.

“This is the central multilateral framework for us,” said the spokesperson about the UN, adding that it is an important instrument in these times of unprecedented global crises.

France, by contrast, “does not intend to answer favorably” to its invitation due to concerns about undermining the UN, a source close to French President Emmanuel Macron told AFP on Monday.

The board’s charter “goes beyond the sole framework of Gaza,” the source said, adding that “it raises major questions, particularly regarding respect for the principles and structure of the United Nations, which under no circumstances can be called into question.”

And while Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney intends to accept his invitation, a source in his government said the country will not pay the $1 billion for a permanent board seat.

“Canada will not pay for a seat on the board, nor has that been requested of Canada at this time,” the government source said.

The source added that Carney had initially indicated he would join the board “because it is important to have a seat at the table to shape this process from within.”

On Sunday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s spokesperson said he “believes member states are free to associate in different groups.”

“The United Nations will continue with its mandated work,” the spokesperson said.