President Trump formally inaugurated his “Board of Peace” on Thursday, signing a founding charter that he claims will reshape global diplomacy starting with the reconstruction of Gaza.
But as the ink dried in Switzerland, the real diplomatic shockwave came from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who revealed that U.S., Ukrainian, and Russian officials are set to meet for unprecedented trilateral talks in the United Arab Emirates this week.
The split-screen moment in Davos highlighted a chaotic but consequential day of diplomacy. While Mr. Trump gathered a coalition of mostly Middle Eastern and Central Asian nations to sign his new charter, America’s traditional European allies were conspicuously absent from the stage.
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A “Board” Without the West
The signing ceremony was a mix of high ambition and diplomatic confusion. The White House had framed the Board of Peace as a necessary evolution in international relations, initially tasked with overseeing the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip following the Trump-brokered ceasefire.
“I think we can spread out to other things as we succeed with Gaza,” Mr. Trump said, hinting that the body could eventually rival the United Nations in scope. “Once the board is formed we can do pretty much whatever we want to do.”
However, the rollout hit immediate snags. A White House list of participants released earlier in the morning included Belgium, but the country’s Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prévot quickly took to X to flatly deny involvement. “Belgium has NOT signed the Charter of the Board of Peace,” Prévot wrote, citing a desire for a coordinated European response.
Other major allies, including the U.K., France, and Finland, openly declined to join. Their hesitation stems largely from constitutional constraints and deep unease over Mr. Trump’s invitation to Russian President Vladimir Putin to join the group.
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“We won’t be one of the signatories today,” U.K. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC, pointing to the absurdity of discussing peace in a forum that welcomes Putin while the war in Ukraine rages on.
The Gaza “Master Plan”
Despite the Western boycott, the machinery of the board began to turn. Jared Kushner, the President’s son-in-law and a key architect of the administration’s Middle East policy, presented a series of slides outlining a “master plan” for Gaza.
Kushner described a vision where the war-torn territory is transformed into a commercial destination, asserting that “we do not have a plan B.” President Trump backed this sentiment, referring to the coastal enclave as a “beautiful piece of property” and noting that the ceasefire has “delivered record levels of humanitarian aid.”
That claim stands in stark contrast to reports from the ground, where airstrikes continue and international aid organizations warn of dire conditions. Just Wednesday, three journalists were killed in a strike Israel said targeted Hamas operatives.
Breakthrough on the Ukraine Front
While the Board of Peace captured the cameras, the most tangible progress may have happened behind closed doors. Following a meeting with Trump that he described as “productive and substantive,” President Zelenskyy dropped the news of the upcoming UAE talks.
This marks the first time representatives from Kyiv, Moscow, and Washington will sit down together in this format. Zelenskyy cautioned that the meetings would be at a “technical level”—likely involving lower-level diplomats rather than heads of state—but the implication was clear: the channel for a deal is open.
“The documents aimed at ending this war are nearly, nearly ready,” Zelenskyy told the forum, though he admitted the “last mile” of negotiations would be the hardest. He emphasized that any ceasefire requires strict security guarantees backed by American power, noting that while European boots on the ground are an option, “no security guarantees work without the U.S.”
The Greenland “Framework”
Overshadowing the peace talks was the bizarre geopolitical drama regarding Greenland. After threatening tariffs on European nations that opposed his bid to purchase the island, President Trump abruptly reversed course Wednesday. RELATED: Icebreaker: Trump Freezes Feb. 1 Tariffs, Ties Trade Relief To New ‘Golden Dome’
He announced that a “framework” deal had been reached with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. While details remain murky, Mr. Trump told Fox Business the agreement would grant the U.S. “total access” to the territory with “no time limit,” seemingly satisfying his strategic goals without a formal purchase.
NATO officials were quick to clarify that the framework focuses on “Arctic security” and collective defense, rather than the real estate transaction the President has long coveted.
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