India's Measured Response to Trump's Gaza 'Board of Peace' Initiative

The Indian side acknowledged on Sunday that it had been invited to join the initiative, and authorities are looking into the issue as it involves several sensitive issues, the people said on condition of anonymity. India’s position continues to be in support of a two-state solution and backing for all initiatives aimed at achieving a lasting peace in the region, they said, without going into details. According to letters sent by Trump to leaders of some 60 countries over the weekend, the “Board of Peace” will work on bringing lasting peace to Gaza and embark on a “bold new approach” to resolve global conflicts – a move that is expected to lead to a global assembly with the US President as its leader. The Indian side, the people said, has several sensitivities related to the proposed body’s plans to take on a role in tackling global conflicts, which could at some point be expanded to take up even the Kashmir issue. In this context, the people pointed to Trump’s repeated claims about brokering a ceasefire to end a brief but intense four-day conflict between India and Pakistan in May 2025, even after New Delhi had rejected all such assertions by saying that hostilities ended after an agreement between military officials of the two sides. Meanwhile, people familiar with the thinking in the French Presidency said on Monday that Paris does not intend to respond favourably to the invitation to join the Board of Peace at this stage. France is currently examining the proposed legal framework for the body along with its partners. “The charter goes beyond the sole framework of Gaza. It raises major issues, in particular regarding respect for the principles and the structure of the United Nations, which cannot under any circumstances be called into question,” one of the people said. France, they said, remains fully committed to a ceasefire in Gaza and a “credible political horizon for Palestinians and Israelis”, while continuing to uphold effective multilateralism. The European Union, Russia, Belarus and Thailand were among the latest to acknowledge receiving the invitation to join the Board of Peace, while Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Sunday he has accepted Trump’s proposal in principle. The board is part of the second phase of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Originally, the body was to be tasked to oversee governance and coordinate funding for Gaza’s reconstruction after the area was devastated by an Israeli military offensive. The White House last week announced the formation of an executive board to operationalise the Board of Peace’s vision. The members of this committee include US secretary of state Marco Rubio, former British premier Tony Blair, US special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and World Bank President Ajay Banga.