UK decline Trump’s invitation to join global board of peace in Gaza over Putin’s presence

The UK has snubbed an invitation to join Donald Trump’s so-called “Board of Peace” because Vladimir Putin will be on it.

British Foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said the government has “concerns” about the Russian president’s presence on the new body given his reluctance to end the war in Ukraine.
Trump is expected to stage a signing ceremony today for the Board of Peace, which was initially mooted in the wake of the ceasefire in Gaza, at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

But on BBC Breakfast on Thursday, Cooper said: “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 still have not seen any signs from Putin that there will be a commitment to peace in Ukraine.”

The foreign secretary added: “We will have continuing international discussions, including with our allies, including on how we work with this and how we work with the peace process for Gaza going forward.”

Britain joins the likes France, Norway and Sweden in turning down Trump’s invitation to join his the board.

The UK’s snub is another example of the growing tensions in relations with the USA.
Keir Starmer yesterday insisted he “will not yield” in his opposition to Trump’s bid to control Greenland, which he has now ditched.

The prime minister had previously described the US president’s actions as “completely wrong”.
Meanwhile, Trump launched an astonishing attack on the UK government’s decision to hand the Chagos Islands over to Mauritius, describing the deal – which he had previously backed – as “an act of great stupidity”.