Just two of the 20 nations that have signed up to Donald Trump’s Board of Peace – launched today in Davos – are considered “free countries”
Donald Trump today officially installed himself as chair of the Board of Peace, the body he is setting up in a bid to rival the United Nations.
While the UK ruled out joining the body today, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair is understood to be an executive member.
The body was originally aimed at fostering peace in the Middle East – but fears are growing that Trump is setting up an authoritarian rival to the United Nations. A draft constitution for the group of nations would appoint him as chairman for life, and give him total control of the $1bn entry fee demanded of permanent members.
Many of the nations who have signed up so far are ruled by hard right wing, authoritarian ‘strongman’ leaders. Signatories include Argentina, Bahrain, Egypt, Hungary, Pakistan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia.
But it includes none of America’s traditional European allies – with France, Italy, Sweden and the UK all ruling themselves out of the group.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said the Government has concerns about the Russian warmonger’s invitation to join the US President’s group. The US President is setting up the board as part of his plan to end the Israel-Hamas war, with a signing ceremony set to take place today.
Ms Cooper told BBC Breakfast: “We won’t be one of the signatories today because this is about a legal treaty that raises much broader issues and we do also have concerns about President Putin being part of something which is talking about peace when we have still not seen any signs from Putin that there will be a commitment to peace in Ukraine.
“And to be honest, that is also what we should be talking about.”
Of the 20 countries understood to have signed up, just two are considered “free” according to the Freedom House’s 2025 Freedom in the World report – Argentina and Israel. Of the remaining 18, 11 are considered ‘not free’, meaning they have serious restrictions on political rights and civil liberties. The remaining seven are considered “partly free”, meaning they have have limited political and civil liberties, restrictions on opposition parties, media censorship or constraints on the rule of law.
The board’s executive committee includes US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Witkoff, Kushner, Blair, Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan, World Bank President Ajay Banga and Trump’s deputy national security adviser Robert Gabriel.
“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 at the body’s launch event, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, adding, “We can do numerous other things. Once this board is completely formed, we can do pretty much whatever we want to do.
“He promised again to work “in conjunction with the United Nations,” but said the UN had not done enough historically. “I think the combination of the Board of Peace with the kind of people we have here, coupled with the United Nations, can be something very, very unique for the world,” Trump said.
In his opening remarks praising the launch of his Board of Peace, Trump made a point to mention the United Nations. He said “many nations” have been part of establishing the body. Then he added, “We’ll work with many others, including the United Nations.”