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New Delhi: India was among a slew of countries invited to join US President Donald Trump’s controversial “Board of Peace” initiative on Gaza, which appears designed to sideline the United Nations and establish what critics describe as a parallel international body with ambitions extending far beyond the Palestinian enclave.

It is understood that New Delhi has not yet decided on whether to accept the invitation, with significant uncertainty remaining about how participation would work.

US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor announced the invitation on the evening of January 18, posting the letter on X.

The letter, dated January 16, invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to join Trump “in a critically Historic and Magnificent effort to solidify Peace in the Middle East and, at the same time, to embark on a bold new approach to resolving Global Conflict.” 

The letter describes the Board of Peace as “the most impressive and consequential Board ever assembled, which will be established as a new International Organization and Transitional Governing Administration.” This language, along with the charter, has raised alarm bells about Trump’s intentions to create an alternative to existing multilateral institutions.

No ‘Gaza’

According to the charter obtained by The Times of Israel, the preamble declares that “durable peace requires pragmatic judgment, common-sense solutions, and the courage to depart from approaches and institutions that have too often failed,” and emphasises “the need for a more nimble and effective international peace-building body.”

The charter makes no reference to Gaza, adding weight to reports that Trump sees the board as a mechanism for resolving conflicts worldwide rather than one limited to the Palestinian enclave.

India has made no official announcement about the offer, and the government has maintained silence on the matter even as other countries have begun to weigh in publicly on the US proposal.

Earlier on January 18, Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi confirmed that Islamabad had also received an invitation. “The prime minister of Pakistan has received the invitation from the president of the United States to join the Board of Peace on Gaza,” Andrabi announced.

‘$1 billion’

Washington is seeking $1 billion from countries wanting permanent membership on the body. The draft charter reveals that Trump would........

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