The White House is planning to convene the first official leaders’ meeting of the “Board of Peace” in Washington on February 19th, as reported by officials from the United States and various foreign diplomats.
This meeting signifies the official operation of this international mechanism led by US President Trump, with a focus on raising billions of dollars for the reconstruction of Gaza after the war, and promoting the implementation of the second phase ceasefire agreement.
On Friday, February 6th, the US news website Axios reported the news first, citing a US official and four diplomats from member countries. Subsequently, the Israeli newspaper, “Israel Times,” confirmed the information based on statements from two Arab diplomats.
“This will be the first meeting of the Board of Peace, and it will be a fundraising event for the reconstruction of Gaza,” a US official told Axios.
Arab diplomats also confirmed to the “Israel Times” that the US has sent invitations to an additional 26 member countries of the committee on Friday afternoon, currently confirming the willingness of each country’s leaders to attend and discussing logistical arrangements.
According to Axios, the meeting is planned to be held at the US Institute of Peace in Washington, D.C.
The movements of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are also closely watched. Netanyahu is expected to visit Washington from February 18th to 22nd, coinciding with the scheduled Board of Peace meeting.
Despite Netanyahu’s previous opposition to the Trump administration’s inclusion of Qatar and Turkey in the Gaza Execution Committee of the Board of Peace, analysts believe that since Netanyahu will already be in Washington at that time, to avoid appearing as if he is snubbing the US, he is highly likely to attend the committee meeting the next day. If this materializes, it will be the first public meeting between Netanyahu and leaders of Arab and Muslim countries since the outbreak of the Gaza war on October 7, 2023.
The White House and the US State Department have not yet issued a public statement on this matter.
The “Board of Peace” currently consists of 27 member countries, with Trump personally serving as chairman. Last month, the US held a charter signing ceremony for the Board of Peace on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
The United Nations Security Council passed a resolution last November authorizing the committee to oversee governance and reconstruction efforts in Gaza for the next two years.
US Ambassador to the UN, Mike Waltz, recently emphasized at the Security Council that the US plans to initiate a weapons disarmament program.
He specifically stated, “All military, terrorist, and offensive infrastructures of Hamas, including tunnels and weapon production facilities, will be destroyed and cannot be rebuilt.”
Waltz added that according to the US proposal, this disarmament mechanism will be supervised by independent “international monitors” and a weapon “buyback” program supported by international funds will be established, even considering integrating some former Hamas members into a new government security force.
However, Israel remains reserved about this, with Netanyahu leaning towards setting shorter disarmament deadlines. Both sides still need to work out details.
Although US Middle Eastern allies have actively joined, some traditional Western allies are cautiously observing the committee’s charter, primarily because the charter gives the chairperson (i.e., Trump himself) absolute veto power, and they are concerned that the committee may sideline existing UN organizations.
Additionally, as the meeting dates coincide with the beginning of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, this may add a variable to the attendance of some leaders. The urgent need for reconstruction in Gaza is estimated to require at least billions of dollars to kickstart basic projects.