Italy’s foreign minister to attend inaugural Board of Peace meeting as ‘observer’

Italy will be present at the first meeting of US President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” as an “observer,” Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani says.

“I will go to Washington to represent Italy as an observer to this first meeting of the Board of Peace, to be present when talks occur and decisions are made for the reconstruction of Gaza and the future of Palestine,” Tajani says according to ANSA news agency.

The board, of which Trump is the chairman, was initially designed to oversee the Gaza truce and the territory’s reconstruction after the war between Hamas and Israel.

But its purpose has since morphed into resolving all sorts of international conflicts, triggering fears the US president wants to create a rival to the United Nations.

The first meeting is scheduled to take place tomorrow in Washington.

Italy cannot be present as anything more than an observer as the country’s constitutional rules do not allow it to join an organization led by a single foreign leader.

But Tajani says it is key for Rome to be “at the forefront, listening to what is being done.”

Since Trump launched his “Board of Peace” at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, at least 19 countries have signed its founding charter.

Countries have been asked to pay $1 billion for permanent membership, and the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose country invaded Ukraine in 2022, has drawn criticism.