US President Donald Trump kicked off his new “Board of Peace” at Davos on Thursday, with a signing ceremony for a body with a $1 billion membership fee and a controversial list of invitees.
A group of leaders and senior officials from 19 countries, including Trump allies from Argentina and Hungary, gathered on stage with Trump to put their names to the founding charter of the body.
Trump, who is the chairman of the Board of Peace, said they were “in most cases very popular leaders, in some cases not so popular. That’s the way it goes in life.”
Originally meant to oversee peace in Gaza after the war between Hamas and Israel, the board’s charter envisions a wider role in resolving international conflicts, sparking concerns that Trump wants it to rival the United Nations.
Trump, however, said the organisation would work “in conjunction” with the UN.
The Board of Peace’s potential membership has, however, proved controversial, with Trump having invited Russian President Vladimir Putin, who invaded Ukraine four years ago.