U.S. President Donald Trump has invited Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to join the Board of Peace, a body tasked with overseeing postwar Gaza, two sources familiar with the matter told Haaretz.

While one source said that Netanyahu was aware that Turkey and Qatar would also be invited to join both the Board of Peace and the Gaza Executive Board, another source disputed this, saying the prime minister was greatly surprised by the inclusion of Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Qatar’s senior adviser to the prime minister, Ali al-Thawadi, on the Gaza Executive Board.

Meanwhile, in Europe, the Board of Peace is expected to encounter significant opposition, diplomats familiar with the matter told Haaretz.

According to the diplomats, European Union member states are expected to refuse to join the board. “None of the Europeans are going to go with it,” one diplomat said, adding that Trump’s threats regarding Greenland were “too much for the EU.”

Two additional diplomatic sources told Haaretz that Trump has also invited Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to join the Board of Peace. The Russian embassy in Israel and the Kremlin did not respond to requests for comment.

A diplomat who spoke with Haaretz said he finds it hard to believe Putin would respond positively to Trump’s invitation and agree to subordinate himself to Trump.

Trump’s invitation to Putin comes despite an arrest warrant issued against him by the International Criminal Court in The Hague over suspected war crimes in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia is also subject to extensive American and European sanctions.

One diplomatic source also said that, according to the information available to him, Ukraine also received an invitation to join the board.

Trump’s Board of Peace

Comprised of heads of state, invited by Trump. Trump chairs the board, and its votes and decisions will be subject to his approval. Terms will be limited to three years and will be renewable with his approval, except for countries that contribute more than $1 billion in the first year.

Will be tasked with setting the agenda for the Board of Peace.

Members include Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Marco Rubio, Tony Blair, businessman Mark Rowan, World Bank President Ajay Banga and U.S. Deputy National Security Advisor Robert Gabriel.

Aryeh Lightstone and Josh Gruenbaum are senior advisers.

The Office of the High Representative will be headed by former UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov. The White House described his role as an “on-the-ground link between the Board of Peace and the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, or NCAG.”

The Gaza Executive Board will support the Office of the High Representative.

Though the scope of its authority is unclear, its members include Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan; Qatari diplomat Ali Al-Thawadi; Egypt’s spychief Hassan Rashad; Emirati Minister Ebrahim al-Hashimy; former Middle East envoy for the UN, Sigrid Kaag; Cypriot-Israeli businessman Yakir Gabay; Marc Rowan; Nickolay Mladneov; Tony Blair; Steve Witkoff; and Jared Kushner.

The National Committee for the Administration of Gaza is a technocratic committee made up of Palestinians overseen by the Office of the High Representative. Dr. Nabil Ali Shaath, who previously served as deputy transportation minister in the Palestinian Authority, will lead the committee.

It is unclear whether the new administration will enjoy real freedom of action or broad public legitimacy.

A European diplomat said that EU ambassadors convened on Sunday for an emergency summit in light of Trump’s ultimatum on Greenland, adding that the diplomats are also expected to discuss the Board of Peace.

According to the diplomat, the establishment of the board, to which only some European countries have been invited so far, is not only directed against the UN but also against the European Union.

The Trump administration has openly signaled its hostility to the EU. “This is why it is trying to separate the member states and supports the European far right,” he said.

On Saturday, Haaretz revealed that the board aims to rival the UN, according to its charter.

According to the document, the board will work to “restore dependable and lawful governance and secure enduring peace in areas affected or threatened by conflict,” in place of other organizations.

It also implicitly criticizes the UN, with its opening emphasizing the need for “a more nimble and effective international peace-building body,” adding that durable peace requires “the courage to depart from … institutions that have too often failed.”

Several countries – including Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan, Jordan, Paraguay and Australia – have officially confirmed that they had received invitations to join the board.

Only Hungary, whose leader is a close Trump ally, gave an unequivocal acceptance in response to the invitations. “We have, of course, accepted this honorable invitation,” Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán wrote on X.

The Brazilian news website ICL Notícias reported that the first reaction in President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva‘s government was sharp criticism of the initiative, but da Silva has yet to officially respond.

A Latin American diplomat who spoke to Haaretz estimated that “as long as the initiative is seen as strengthening a superpower at the expense of a collective solution, there is no doubt that we’ll prefer a UN initiative.”

The board’s decisions, according to the charter, will be made by vote and will be subject to Trump’s approval.

The charter treats the chairmanship as a personal role rather than one linked to the U.S. presidency, stating that “Donald J. Trump shall serve as inaugural Chairman of the Board of Peace,” with no reference to the office of president or to any fixed term.

The document states that Trump’s appointment as chairman will only be terminated if he chooses to do so, or due to “incapacity,” which must be determined by “a unanimous vote of the Executive Board.” The wording suggests that Trump will be able to hold office even if he is no longer president of the United States.

Board members will meet for a vote at least once a year and the agenda for these meetings will be set by the Executive Board, whose members include Trump’s representatives alongside others, subject to Trump’s approval and amendments from the representatives of the countries.

Trump will also have exclusive power to create or dissolve subsidiary bodies, issue binding resolutions, designate his own successor and dissolve the organization outright or renew it at will every two years.

Reuters contributed to this report.

https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/2026-01-19/ty-article/.premium/trump-invites-putin-to-board-of-peace-eu-states-to-decline-invitation-diplomats-say