Britain will not join Donald Trump's 'board of peace' on Thursday, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has said, citing concerns about Russian involvement. The UK supports the US president's 20-point plan for Gaza but has reservations about the initiative's inclusion of Vladimir Putin.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Cooper stated: 'We won't be one of the signatories today. Because this is about a legal treaty that raises much broader issues, and we do also have concerns about President Putin being part of something which is talking about peace, when we have still not seen any signs from Putin that there will be a commitment to peace in Ukraine.'
The 'board of peace' was set up last week to oversee a ceasefire and reconstruction in Gaza, but critics argue it undermines existing international bodies. The Kremlin announced on Monday that Putin had been invited to join, with Trump claiming at Davos that Putin had accepted. However, a Kremlin spokesperson said Russia was seeking to 'clarify all the nuances' before responding.
First appointments to the board include Trump as chair, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and others. Countries such as Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, and Israel have agreed to join. Meanwhile, Trump is due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Davos on Thursday as talks to end the war in Ukraine continue.
