There are two more names to appear on a list that already had Viktor Orbán or Javier Milei
Russian President Vladimir Putin has been invited to join US President Donald Trump’s “Peace Council”, the committee that will oversee the reconstruction of Gaza, his spokesman revealed this Monday.
Dmitry Peskov told journalists during a regular press conference: “President Putin also received, through diplomatic channels, an invitation to join this Peace Council.”
The Kremlin is now analyzing the invitation and “hopes to obtain more details from the American side”.
CNN asked the White House for comment.
Later on Monday, the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that President Alexander Lukashenko had also received an invitation to join the council.
The ministry’s press service said that Minsk “highly appreciates the fact that the American side sees Belarus – and this is clearly stated in the text of the speech – as a country ready to take on the noble responsibility of building lasting peace and leading by example, investing in a secure and prosperous future for future generations.”
Lukashenko is Putin’s closest ally and has been described as Europe’s last dictator.
The creation of the council, chaired by Trump, is a fundamental step in the United Nations-backed American plan to demilitarize and rebuild Gaza, which has been devastated by two years of war between Israel and the militant group Hamas.
However, signs of discontent have already begun to emerge. Irish Foreign Minister Helen McEntee issued a statement on Sunday warning that the body proposed by Trump “would have a broader mandate than the implementation of the Gaza Peace Plan”.
“The United Nations has a unique mandate to maintain international peace and security, and the legitimacy to bring nations together to find common solutions to shared challenges. Although it may be imperfect, the UN and the rule of international law are now more important than ever,” he said in a statement.
The best advice ever
Described by Trump as “the best and most prestigious council ever assembled”, the committee will include former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Trump also invited Israel to join the council as a founding member, a senior Israeli official told CNN on Monday. According to the official, the invitation was addressed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or another Israeli representative on his behalf.
It is not known exactly how many invitations were sent – information about the countries and world leaders invited to join has been given by each of the States, and not by the White House.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Argentine President Javier Milei, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán also received invitations to participate, according to statements from them or their offices. US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was also invited to participate.
Some of the leaders, including Orbán, publicly shared the invitation letters. The letters show that although Trump addressed them personally to the leaders, he was inviting their country to join the council as a “founding state.”
Committee members will receive a permanent seat if they pay $1 billion, according to a US source, who told CNN that while there was no requirement to contribute funds to the board, members who do not make the $1 billion payment will serve a three-year term.
All funds raised will be channeled into the reconstruction of Gaza, the official added, adding that “there will be no exorbitant salaries and huge administrative bloat that plagues many other international organizations.”
Return to the world stage
Putin’s appointment to the board of directors would mark an extraordinary return to the world stage for the Russian leader, who has mostly been sidelined from international cooperation projects since ordering the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The Kremlin’s involvement in the conflict between Israel and Hamas has been limited, despite offering to mediate shortly after the war began, promoting its ties with both Israel and Hamas.
Unlike many Western countries, Russia does not officially consider Hamas a terrorist group. Senior Hamas officials visited Moscow just weeks after the militant group launched the October 7 terrorist attacks against Israel, despite at least 20 Russian citizens being killed or kidnapped in the attacks.
In 2024, Palestinian factions, some of which had been in conflict for nearly two decades, gathered in Moscow. Russian state news agency TASS reported earlier this month that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was expected to visit Russia later this week.
CNN’s Kevin Liptak and Tal Shalev contributed to this report
