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The Trump administration's newly formed "Board of Peace" announced 26 countries as founding members of the initiative on Wednesday, with major European powers notably absent amid strained relations with Washington over Greenland and tariff disputes.
A week after U.S. President Donald Trump formally introduced the Board of Peace at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the body launched an official account on X and published its list of founding members.
The founding members include: Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Albania, Bahrain, Belarus, Bulgaria, Cambodia, El Salvador, Egypt, Hungary, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Mongolia, Morocco, Pakistan, Paraguay, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.
The list spans the Middle East, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Caucasus regions.
Notably absent from the founding members are major European countries such as France, Germany and the United Kingdom.
Sharp disagreements with Trump on issues including Greenland and tariff policies have strained relations between Washington and several European capitals.
Russia was not included among the founding members despite Russian President Vladimir Putin saying Moscow was ready to allocate $1 billion from Russian assets frozen by the previous U.S. administration to the board's budget.
Trump called Putin's proposal "an interesting idea."
Belarus accepted the invitation to join, while Ukraine questioned how it could participate alongside Russia and Belarus.
Trump rescinded Canada's invitation, citing Prime Minister Mark Carney's speech at the World Economic Forum in which he warned against economic coercion by major powers.
The U.S. presidential administration originally sent invitations to the heads of approximately 50 states, who publicly announced over several days that they had received the American president's proposals.
The list of invitees included countries from different regions, from Australia to Japan.
Trump announced the establishment of the Board of Peace on Jan. 15 as part of his broader plan for Gaza, under which the ceasefire agreement was reached.
The board was authorized by U.N. Security Council Resolution 2803 in November 2025.
Originally conceived to oversee the ceasefire and reconstruction of Gaza, the board's charter expands its mandate to include peace-building in all areas affected by, or at risk of, conflict.
Further details on the board's mandate, leadership structure and timeline for implementation have yet to be formally announced.
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