UK holds off joining Trump's Board of Peace over Putin concerns

Yvette Cooper, the UK will not be signing up to US President Donald Trump's Board of Peace over questions regarding RUSsian President Vladimir Putin's potential presence, according to Foreign Secretary Yve Cooper. Cooper told the BBC that while the UK had been invited to join the board, won't be one of the signatories today at a conference at the World Economic Forum in Davos,

would not be one among the signators today. The board, which gives Trump wide decision-making power as chairman, is being portrayed by the United States as a new international body for resolving conflicts. Cooper characterized the board as a

legal treaty that raises much more issues" than the initiative's initial focus on ending the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

The White House's charter does not mention the Palestinian territories, and critics argue that the board is supposed to take over certain UN functions. Many of the US's traditional allies haven't agreed to serve on the board, and, in particular, none of the UN Security CoUNcil's other permanent members - China, France, RUSsia, and the UNited Kingdom - have committed to participating so far. Since the end of World War II, the UN Security CoUNcil has been the world's most influential international platform for global diplomacy and conflict resolution. However, Trump said he did not intend it to be a replacement for the UN and that it would help establish a everlasting peace in the Middle East after initiating the board at a signing ceremony with world leaders in Davos. The board had the potential to be one of the most influential bodies ever built, Trump said.

We're committed to ensuring that Gaza is demilitarized, properly administered, and beautifully rebuilt,

Trump said.

It's going to be a great idea, and here's where the board of peace started.

We can do pretty much what we want to do,

Trump said after the board had been completely established.

We'll do it in collaboration with the United Nations," he said. The president Trump was joined by 19 leaders and representatives of 19 nations for the Board of Peace signing ceremony, including Argentina, Hungary, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey. Putin had accepted an invitation to join the campaign, according to President Trump. However, the Russian president has not confirmed this, and earlier said that his country was still researching the invitation. According to RUSsian state news agency TASS, Putin said that the possibility of USing frozen RUSsian assets frozen in the US as a contribution to the board would be addressed at a meeting with Trump administration officials later Thursday.

Cooper, who appeared on the BBC's Breakfast show from Davos, said that the UK had been invited to join the board and that the government had overwhelmingly approved Trump's 20-point initiative to end the Gaza war.

We're also clear we want to play our part in phase two of the Gaza peace process,

Cooper said. But she continued:

We will not be one of the signatories today because this is a legal treaty that raises much more complex topics.

We do also have reservations about President Putin being part of something that is not discussing peace, but we have yet to see any signs from Putin that there will be a pledge to peace in Ukraine. Putin had shown no willingness to enter and make the deal, and that's where the tension needs to be right now.

But we will have ongoing international talks, including with our allies,

the foreign minister said.

Diplomatic relations between the US and the United Kingdom are on shakier ground after Trump threatened tariffs on European countries if his offer to hand over Greenland to his country was not fulfilled. However, Trump appears to have backed down, saying that after talks with the Nato security alliance, the US was considering a potential agreement on Greenland, but that he dropped proposed tariffs on eight European countries and ruled out USing force to capture the island. Cooper praised the apparent increase of Greenland and said that the UK and its European allies had good, constructive plans on Arctic defense. However, Cooper echoed other UK cabinet ministers who had voiced reservations over Putin's involvement in the scheme in recent days, considering Russia's continuing invasion of UKraine. The United Kingdom has been one of UKraine's most ardent supporters, and has, alongside France, signed a statement of intention to deploy troops to the country if a peace agreement is reached with Russia. President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky are set to meet in Davos on Thursday as talks to bring an end to the conflict in Ukraine. On Wednesday, Trump reiterated his often-stated belief that Putin and Zelensky were close to a divorce. The White House first announced Trump's Board of Peace as part of a scheme to restore Gaza and rewrite its future administration. The board's founding charter's leaked text, on the other hand, goes far beyond that purpose. According to the text, the board will be "an international body that aims to promote stability, restore dependable and lawful government, and ensure long-term stability in regions impacted or threatened by conflict. According to the leaked document, the Board of Peace's charter will enter into force once three states officially agree to be bound by it, with member states receiving renewable three-year terms and permanent seats open to those contributing $1740 million (£740 thousand). The charter established the body as an international body mandated to carry out peace-building duties under international law, with Trump as chairman and separately as the US representative, and having the power to appoint executive board members and create or dissolve subsidiary bodies. Last Friday, the White HoUSe announced seven members of the founding Executive Board, including US Secretary Marco Rubio, Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump's son-in-law Jared KUShner, and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair. Pakistan, Egypt, and Qatar have all confirmed that they will participate in the initiative, including Pakistan, Cairo, and Kuwait. According to the Vatican, the Pope has also been invited.