Pakistan is joining US President Donald Trump's "Board of Peace", a body composed largely of invited heads of state and originally meant to oversee Gaza's rebuilding.
The Board of Peace was proposed by Trump last September as part of his plan to end the war in Gaza. The initiative now seems to be aimed to cater to conflicts beyond Gaza.
Pakistan's foreign ministry released a statement confirming that it accepted the invitation extended by Trump to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to join the ‘Board of Peace’.
“In response to the invitation extended to Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif by the President of the United States, H.E. Donald J. Trump, Pakistan would like to announce its decision to join the Board of Peace (BoP) as part of its ongoing efforts to support the implementation of the Gaza Peace Plan under the framework of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803,” the Pakistan foreign ministry statement read.
What Pak said
The statement said Pakistan expresses the hope that with the creation of this framework, concrete steps will be taken towards the implementation of a permanent ceasefire, “further scaling up of humanitarian aid for the Palestinians, as well as reconstruction of Gaza.”
“Pakistan also hopes that these efforts will lead to the realization of the right to self-determination of the people of Palestine, through a credible, time-bound political process, consistent with international legitimacy and relevant UN resolutions, resulting in the establishment of an independent, sovereign, and contiguous State of Palestine, based on the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital,” the statement added.
{{/usCountry}}“Pakistan also hopes that these efforts will lead to the realization of the right to self-determination of the people of Palestine, through a credible, time-bound political process, consistent with international legitimacy and relevant UN resolutions, resulting in the establishment of an independent, sovereign, and contiguous State of Palestine, based on the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital,” the statement added.
{{/usCountry}}Pakistan said it looks forward to continue playing a constructive role as part of the Board of Peace for the achievement of these goals as well as to end the suffering of our Palestinian brothers and sisters.
With Pakistan, nine Muslim-majority countries including Gaza mediators Qatar and Turkey have agreed to join Trump's “Board of Peace”.
On Wednesday, Saudi announced the "shared decision" of the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, and the United Arab Emirates to join the body to be chaired by Trump, saying they supported his "peace efforts" on the Gaza conflict.
Kuwait's foreign ministry later posted on X that the country had also accepted.
Invites were sent to dozens of world leaders with a request for $1 billion for a permanent seat on the board. The Saudi or Pakistan statement did not mention payment.