UK won’t join ‘Board of Peace’ signing ceremony, says minister
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
US President Donald Trump is due to host the signing ceremony for the founding charter of his body for resolving international conflicts in Davos on Jan 22.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
LONDON - Britain will not take part in the Jan 22 signing ceremony for US President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” in Davos, British Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper said.
Mr Trump is due to host the ceremony in Davos for the founding charter of his body for resolving international conflicts
“There’s a huge amount of work to do; we won’t be one of the signatories today,” Ms Cooper told BBC television from the Swiss mountain town, amid Britain’s concerns about the inclusion of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose forces are still fighting in Ukraine after invading in 2022.
“Because this is about a legal treaty that raises much broader issues, and we do also have concerns about President Putin being part of something which is talking about peace, when we have still not seen any signs from Putin that there will be a commitment to peace in Ukraine,” she added.
Invites were earlier sent to dozens of world leaders to join the so-far vaguely defined grouping.
Although originally meant to oversee Gaza’s rebuilding, the board’s charter does not seem to limit its role to the Strip and appears to want to rival the United Nations, drawing the ire of some US allies including France.
Mr Trump said on Jan 21 that Mr Putin had accepted the invitation to join the Board of Peace initiative, despite the Kremlin so far saying it was still studying the invite. AFP
