The delicate balancing act facing Europe as it seeks to defuse tensions with United States President Donald Trump over Greenland is unexpectedly being complicated by a flurry of invitations to world nations to join his Gaza Board of Peace.
The question of whether the EU and member states should join the board, originally set up to administrate post-war Gaza, will be discussed by leaders on Thursday when they gather for an extraordinary summit convened in response to Trump’s latest tariff threats.
Diplomats worry the issue is becoming entwined with the Greenland crisis, with Europeans being forced to coordinate whether they accept their seats or not – thereby risking infuriating the US president just as tensions hit a new high.
Permanent membership on the board costs $1 billion, with the money ostensibly going to rebuild Gaza.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and a host of EU governments including France, Germany, Italy and Hungary, have been offered a place on the board. France has already said it does not intend to join over fears the Board’s charter – which makes no mention of Gaza – calls into question the “principles and structure of the United Nations” and grants “extensive powers” to Trump, the board’s chair.
Trump has since threatened a 200% tariff on French wine and champagne in retaliation, a clear signal that the issue could become another fault line in EU-US ties.
Speaking to Euronews at Davos on Tuesday, Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot accused Trump of seeking to “replace the United Nations’ system” with his “own personal board”.
A new world order?
The sweeping mandate Trump is seemingly granting the board, and the glaring lack of focus on war-torn Gaza and its future, is also troubling officials in Brussels.
Officials and diplomats have privately raised serious concerns about the board’s framework, selection process, mandate and governance structure, and want it to revert back to Gaza rather than create a parallel UN Security Council.
And while a Palestinian-led technocratic committee has been tasked with leading Gaza’s day-to-day affairs, there are concerns about the lack of Palestinian representation on the two separate senior panels of the Board, which oversee investment, diplomacy and governance.
The European Commissioner for the Mediterranean, who oversees the EU’s Gaza policy, has called for the “inclusion of all key stakeholders” on the board.
Trump has also extended an invitation to Russian President Vladimir Putin, making Europe’s participation politically untenable.
The debate on the board will likely blow open existing rifts between EU member states on foreign policy issues. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has already accepted his seat, with his foreign minister Péter Szijjártó saying the premier is “honoured” by Trump’s offer.
Board members will oversee an executive committee that will be in charge of implementing the second phase of a 20-point peace plan for Gaza presented by Trump last September, which includes the deployment of an international security force, the disarmament of Hamas and reconstruction of the war-torn territory.
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