WASHINGTON, February 19. /TASS/. Addressing the first meeting of the Gaza Board of Peace that has been established at the United States’ initiative, US President Donald Trump said that he believes that all countries that were invited to become board members will accept.

TASS has compiled key facts about the organization and preparations for its first meeting.

Expectations for the first meeting

The Board of Peace is currently focused on settling the conflict in the Gaza Strip, US Permanent Representative to the United Nations Michael Waltz said.

However, in his words, it is flexible enough to also address other global challenges.

The Board of Peace member countries, at their first meeting in Washington on February 19, will announce the allocation of more than $5 billion to restore the Gaza Strip, US President Donald Trump said on February 15.

Member countries "have committed thousands of personnel to the International Stabilization Force and Local Police to maintain Security and Peace for Gazans," he noted.

The United States is expected to present a plan for Gaza restoration and the formation of an international stabilization force, Reuters reported.

Participants

According to Reuters, representatives of at least 20 world nations will take part in the meeting.

EU Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Suica will represent the European Union at the Board of Peace meeting, spokesman Guillaume Mercier said.

Cyprus, Turkey, Italy, Israel will be represented by top diplomats, according to their foreign ministries.

Poland and Greece will be represented by deputy foreign ministers.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Romanian President Nicusor Dan, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, To Lam, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet have confirmed their participation.

The Czech and Slovak foreign ministers, and two representatives of the Swiss foreign ministry will attend the Board of Peace meeting as observers.

Russia’s position

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia is ready to allocate $1 billion to the Board of Peace from its assets immobilized in the United States.

He stated that Moscow is prepared to do so even before the issue of participation in the Board's composition and its work is resolved.

Russia is currently the only country in the world to have committed such a lofty sum in aid to Palestine, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said.

Moscow continues analyzing the entire set of proposals concerning the board’s functioning procedures, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said.

Moscow, in his words, is in no hurry to decide whether or not to participate in the Gaza Board of Peace.

Moscow’s position on the Board of Peace is being formulated, including taking into account the positions of its Middle East partners, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

Russia’s representatives will not take part in the first meeting of the Board of Peace, Zakharova said.

Russia expects the Board of Peace to unequivocally call for de-escalation both in the Gaza Strip and in the West Bank, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said.

Who refused to join

Mexico will attend the first meeting of the Gaza Board of Peace as an observer, but will not join it due to the absence of Palestine there, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said.

The Holy See will not participate in the work of the Board of Peace "due to its specific nature, which differs significantly from that of other states," Vatican State Secretary Cardinal Pietro Parolin said.

France thinks it unacceptable to take part in the work of the Board of Peace and will demand explanations from the European Commission, which sent its representative there without EU Council mandate, French foreign ministry spokesperson Pascal Confavreux said.

About the organization

On January 22, representatives of 19 countries signed the charter establishing the Board of Peace for Gaza in a ceremony on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Along with US President Donald Trump, the leaders and representatives of Azerbaijan, Argentina, Armenia, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Hungary, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Morocco, Mongolia, the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Paraguay, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and self-proclaimed republic of Kosovo signed the document.

More than 50 countries will join the Board of Peace, Trump said after the ceremony.

While the Board was established under the agreement between Israel and the radical Palestinian movement Hamas to govern the enclave, its mission is expected to extend to conflicts in other parts of the world as well.

Each member state will remain on the board for not more than three years, except those who will pay a permanent membership fee of at least $1 billion, Bloomberg said, citing the board’s draft charter.

The actual powers of the Board of Peace, established on the initiative of US President Donald Trump, remain unclear, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

The Board cannot replace the United Nations, he stressed.