Australia leaves door open to signing up to Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ despite global concerns

Australia has left open the possibility of signing on to Donald Trump’s international “Board of Peace”, which the US President has proposed as part of the second phase of his 20-point peace plan for Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has become the latest world leader to ink his name to the proposed US president-chaired international body.

United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Vietnam, Belarus, Hungary, Kazakhstan and Argentina are among other countries that have already agreed to participate, while Russia’s Vladimir Putin is still considering his response.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said Australia was watching the response of other nations to the exclusive world leaders forum but insisted the Albanese Government would make its own sovereign decision about whether to accept Trump’s invitation to join the board - on its own timeline.

“We’re considering that in the usual, methodical way that we consider these kinds of proposals. Obviously, we monitor the comments and the responses of other countries, but we’ll come to our own in due course,” the Labor Minister said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday also declared he was still considering the offer.

The board, proposed last year, has since evolved with an expanded focus to broker all peace deals worldwide.

While endorsed by the United Nations (UN) in November, concerns have been raised that Mr Trump is unilaterally trying to take over as a new UN and could harm the body’s work.

Names thrown out to feature on an executive board include former British prime minister Tony Blair, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Mr Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff, deputy national security adviser Robert Gabriel and the President’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Even Pope Leo has received an invitation, according to the Vatican’s top diplomatic official Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

Greens’ defence spokesman David Shoebridge called for Mr Albanese to distance himself from the autocrats and despots and “rule out joining the board” which could help Mr Trump wedge him himself as the new global peacemaker.

“Australia must rule out joining this board, particularly given overnight that the architect of the genocide in Gaza, Prime Minister Netanyahu, has now joined,” Senator Shoebridge told The Nightly.

“A billion-dollar buy-in for a seat at Trump’s table isn’t peace-making, it’s a geopolitical protection racket by an administration that never misses an opportunity to squeeze its temporary friends and allies.

“Australia should not be giving support, let alone a billion dollars, to a US shakedown that seeks to undermine the United Nations and sideline Palestinian self-determination.”

While Mr Trump claimed at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss town of Davos that the Russian president had accepted his offer, Mr Putin later confirmed the invitation was being reviewed but added Moscow was ready to provide $1bn.

A statement from the Norwegian prime minister said Nordic nation would not be joining the board and “further dialogue” was required with the US on the proposal which “raises a number of questions”.