India skips Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ launch at Davos as Pakistan joins

US President Donald Trump on Thursday (January 22) launched his proposed “Board of Peace” on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, but India stayed away from the event even as Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif appeared alongside Trump, fuelling debate over the initiative’s optics, intent and worldwide backing.

The Board of Peace, set up by Trump to work for peace in Gaza, has a broad and open-ended mandate that has raised concerns about whether it will undermine the role of the United Nations.

Notable absentees

No permanent member of the UN Security Council or any member of the G7, other than the United States, has joined the Board of Peace.

Britain said it is not joining at present, France has declined the invitation, Russia said it is studying the proposal, and China has not yet made its position clear.

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Russia, however, said it was willing to contribute funds to support the Palestinians.

India non-committal

India was one of the major countries absent during the launch of the Board of Peace at Davos, though Prime Minister Narendra Modi had been invited to join. It is said that New Delhi neither accepted nor declined the offer.

Given the various security and geopolitical issues involved, officials said India is examining the proposal to join the board.

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India has been one of the countries that have consistently supported a two-State solution to the Palestinian problem.

Some political experts are of the view that India should be cautious in deciding whether or not to take an active role in the Board of Peace to ensure that multilateral institutions like the United Nations are not weakened. They feel that India should rather concentrate on the trade talks with the US, and engage with Washington from a position of strength.

Board of Peace

Though the board has been set up with the primary intention of ensuring peace in Gaza, it is reported that the official charter makes no mention of Gaza, but instead has a sweeping mandate that could undermine existing international bodies that are working for conflict resolution and global governance.

The board’s charter states that it will promote stability and enduring peace in areas affected by conflict, and Trump said it could take tackle other global crises after it completes its work in Gaza.

“I think we can spread out to other things as we succeed with Gaza. We can do numerous other things. Once this board is completely formed, we can do pretty much whatever we want to do,” said Trump.

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The US president noted that the board could work together with the UN, but at the same time stated clearly that the world body “had no role in the eight wars he had stopped, including the India-Pakistan conflict”.

“We’re very happy to stop that war that had started with India and Pakistan, two nuclear nations, and I was very honoured when the prime minister of Pakistan said President Trump saved 10 and maybe 20 million lives,” continued Trump.

There are concerns that Trump could continue as a permanent chairman of the Board of Peace.

Nations that joined Board of Peace

About 60 countries received invitations from Trump last week to join the Board of Peace.

Around 35 nations have signed the charter, including the heads of state or government of 11 countries – Armenia, Bulgaria, Uzbekistan, Argentina, Paraguay, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Kosovo, Azerbaijan, and Hungary.

While Pakistan’s PM Sharif signed the documents, the country’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir was also present at the ceremony.

Pakistan PM faces backlash at home

Pakistan’s PM Shehbaz Sharif faced a huge backlash from political leaders and parties at home for joining Trump’s Board of Peace. Many of them criticised his decision, calling it poorly thought and morally questionable.

Imran Khan’s party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) said such a significant policy decision should not have been taken unilaterally, and that it should have been done after consultations with all major political stakeholders and thorough scrutiny by Parliament.

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Pakistan’s former law minister Babar Awan said Sharif had made a huge mistake by accepting Trump’s invitation, and that his habit of “boot-polishing” has caused significant damage to the nation.

“Sitting on some Board of Peace just to please Trump, without holding an international criminal like Netanyahu accountable for his war crimes, is treason against the Palestinian cause. This blunder is a defiance of Quaid-e-Azam’s command and a historic mistake,” wrote Babar Awan in a post on X.