United States (US) President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace – formally established on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in January 2026 – purports to be an intergovernmental organisation mandated to carry out peacebuilding functions under international law. However within just a few weeks of its existence multiple concerns have arisen regarding its likely impact on the international system and human rights framework, with clear implications for situations of severe crisis around the world, including Gaza and Sudan.
Firstly, despite the organisation being billed initially as a means of implementing the Gaza ceasefire plan as enshrined in UN Security Council resolution 2803, the board’s charter makes no mention of Gaza, and instead details a mandate that possibly could undermine international law, including by supplanting crucial responsibilities of the United Nations (UN), while also potentially impacting its liquidity crisis.
Continue reading “The United States’ Board of Peace is unlikely to fix the shortcomings of the current international order”Citizens of almost half of the countries that have joined the board so far are impacted by US travel bans imposed by the Trump administration. The board also appears to have been created on a ‘pay for play’ basis, with no clear oversight of the organisation’s nominally voluntary membership fees, particularly the USD 1 billion fee to secure permanent membership, raising the spectre of a potential world order where access to justice and the promotion, protection and fulfilment of human rights are dependent on a nation’s wealth, its military capability, and ultimately, its standing with the US president.
