MOSCOW, January 30. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump seeks Russia's membership on the Board of Peace to bolster the organization's credibility and demonstrate its strength, according to Vasily Nebenzya, Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN, speaking on Rossiya-24 television channel.

"Trump needs the Board of Peace. He wants us there as a symbol of the universality and power of this institution he's establishing," Nebenzya explained. Originally conceived as a body to facilitate the reconstruction of Gaza, the scope of the Board has been expanded, with discussions now suggesting it should address all global crises.

Nebenzya noted that even some European nations, reacting with suspicion to Russia's involvement, are largely rejecting Trump's bid, viewing it as an encroachment on the prerogatives of the United Nations, particularly its Security Council. "There is some truth to this," he acknowledged.

He also recalled that Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed allocating one billion dollars from frozen Russian assets - not to the Board of Peace, but to support Gaza's reconstruction.

"What will happen next? We don't know. But clearly, Trump desires a large, influential Board of Peace," Nebenzya concluded.