Board of Peace

Sam Sifton, NY Times - Today, President Trump greets his creation. The Board of Peace will hold its first gathering since more than 20 nations signed the board’s founding charter last month. Delegates will talk about how to rebuild Gaza.

But the board, a kind of Trump-aligned alternative to the United Nations, is aiming much higher. It wants to “secure enduring peace in areas affected or threatened by conflict,” according to the charter. That’s a lot of places beyond Gaza. It also promises to be a nimble peacekeeping body, presumably unlike the diplomats at the United Nations....

Member nations must cough up $1 billion to secure a permanent board seat. If they don’t pay, they lose their spot after three years.

The recruits are an odd assortment — not all America’s traditional friends. They include Argentina, Hungary, Indonesia, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. Seven European nations, including France and Britain, have declined the offer. Trump rescinded Canada’s invitation after the prime minister criticized U.S. foreign policy. Russia said it would pony up if the United States thawed its bank accounts.

Trump is the chairman — not just while he’s president, but for life! He can invite new countries to join or expel others. He decides who is on the executive committee. Among them are Jared Kushner, his son-in-law; and Tony Blair, a former British prime minister. Trump is the “final authority” on all matters related to the board and its operations. There are not a lot of checks and balances. He makes the calls.....

Many experts in international affairs worry about what they see as a worst-case scenario: The Trump administration could weaken the multilateral diplomatic system that the United States helped build after World War II — and replace it with something more rapacious and less stable, led by Trump....

“Peace in the world requires a broad, international consensus,” an international law professor who specializes in peace negotiations told The Times. “That can hardly be created through a new institution that is entirely dependent on the will of one man.”