In Davos, Trump Unveils His 'Board of Peace'

President Trump used the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to unveil a proposed "Board of Peace" for Gaza, bringing leaders from more than a dozen countries onstage Thursday, though many top American allies aren't participating in the board. Speaking at a ceremony to sign the board's charter, Trump said it could work with the United Nations to resolve wars not only in the Middle East, where the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza was the genesis of the concept, the AP reports.

• Trump offered few details about its mandate and how the panel will work or might pursue efforts to end global conflicts, but he hailed the board as "something very, very unique for the world."

• "I think we can spread out to other things as as we succeed with Gaza, we're going to be very successful in Gaza," Trump said. "We can do numerous other things. Once this board is completely formed, we can do pretty much whatever we want to do."
• Trump did not provide specifics about how the board would cooperate with the UN. A number of countries, many of them close US allies, have expressed concerns Trump might want the board to supplant or rival the UN and have either refused to sign on or remained noncommittal. Vladimir Putin says he'll join the board if the US unfreezes Russian assets. Joining requires paying a $1 billion "bond of peace."
• The Guardian notes the the Board of Peace logo resembles the UN logo, "except reworked in Trump fashion: all in gold, and focused squarely on the US."
• Some of the leaders at the Board of Peace ceremony had little connection to the Middle East, the Telegraph reports. Argentina, Mongolia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Paraguay were represented. Viktor Orban of Hungary was the only European leader present.

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, meanwhile, scolded European allies for what he described as a slow and fragmented response to Russia's invasion, likening it to the movie Groundhog Day, in which the main character endlessly relives the same day. "Just last year, here in Davos, I ended my speech with the words: Europe needs to know how to defend itself," he said. "A year has passed. And nothing has changed."
• He said that he is hopeful about upcoming trilateral meetings but that the issue of land in the country's war-torn east remains "the most difficult" during his discussions with the US. "This is the issue we cannot solve yet," he said. The two days of trilateral meetings in the United Arab Emirates, beginning Friday will include the national security advisers of the US, Ukraine, and Russia, the Ukrainian president said. He also said the document covering security guarantees for Ukraine has been completed. The bilateral deal with the US and Ukraine, however, would only come into effect if Russia agrees to end the war.
• Zelensky said he had a "productive and substantive" meeting with Trump before the president departed Davos. He said he and Trump spoke about air defense for Ukraine. The US and Ukrainian leaders were together for about an hour in what Trump described to reporters as a good meeting. The Russia-Ukraine war "has to end," Trump said, adding, "We hope it's going to end."