Mel Gurtov: A board like no other

About the writer: Mel Gurtov, syndicated through PeaceVoice, holds professor emeritus status in the Political Science Department at Portland State University.

Donald Trump has turned the presidency into a vanity project, campaigning for the Nobel Peace Prize, pimping for cybercurrency and putting his name and image all over Washington, most recently on a banner atop the Department of Justice. He’s every bit the rival of Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin when it comes to a cult of personality.

His latest venture is the Board of Peace, which is not really about promoting peace in Gaza or anywhere else — and certainly not in Iran, Ukraine or Latin America. It’s another self-promoting venture in Trump’s desperate quest to be honored as a peacemaker while operating like a warmonger and investment banker.

At the Board of Peace’s inaugural meeting Feb. 19, attended mainly by envoys from the Middle East, Trump again said its work would reach beyond Gaza to “hotspots” around the world.

“We have the greatest leaders in the world joining the Board of Peace,” Trump told reporters. “I think it has the chance to be the most consequential board ever assembled of any kind.”

In a Jan. 16 invitation letter to Argentina’s President Javier Milei, Trump said the board represented opportunity “to embark on a bold new approach to resolving Global Conflict!” The board will “start with Gaza and then do conflicts as they arise,” he told Reuters.

As the board’s self-appointed “chairman for life,” Trump can do whatever he likes with it — always his preferred situation.

The membership so far reveals something far short of Trump’s “most consequential,” however.

Of 27 members, two, Israel’s Netanyahu and Russia’s Putin, are facing arrest warrants on war crimes charges. They are joined by a who’s-who of the world’s autocrats, including Milei of Argentina, Aliyev of Azerbaijan, Lukashenko of Belarus, al-Sisi of Egypt, Bukele of El Salvador, Orban of Hungary, bin Salman of Saudi Arabia and Erdogan of Turkey.

Most European countries, as well as New Zealand, rejected invitations. Canada, you will recall, was disinvited.

Pope Leo declined to take part.

The Vatican’s top diplomat said international crisis management should be handled by the United Nations rather than a U.S.-led body. That decision no doubt reflects Pope Leo’s criticisms of Trump on other matters.

No matter. All that matters with Trump is that the board is composed of leaders who can’t wait to gratify Trump’s craving for cash.

The United Arab Emirates has ponied up $1 billion, which happens to be the price of permanent membership. Anyone who doesn’t pay $1 billion will be limited to three years.

Trump pledged $10 billion from the U.S., a figure that seems to come from out of nowhere, as no amount has been appropriated by Congress. Presumably, the money will come from the U.S. treasury, which means from taxpayers.

How easily Trump can spend $10 billion to satisfy his ego, but not spend a similar amount to preserve the environment or save lives with humanitarian assistance abroad.

Serving the cause of peace is a sideshow. Gaza reconstruction is supposed to be the main reason a board was set up.

Trump announced that he had secured $7 billion for that purpose, but that’s a pittance, roughly a tenth of what is thought to be needed.

One has to wonder why Trump’s friends in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and other Gulf states haven’t come up with the balance. Perhaps they’re unhappy with the lack of a Palestinian on the board. Or perhaps they find it embarrassing that “reconstruction” will amount to adopting Jared Kushner’s plan for glitzy AI-run high-rises beyond the reach of ordinary Palestinians, most of whom will be sitting in camps near the Egyptian border.

Using the reconstruction funds is another matter. It depends on overcoming major obstacles, such as disarming Hamas, terminating de facto Israeli occupation of the West Bank and reversing an Israeli decision forcing 37 NGOs such as Doctors Without Borders and Oxfam to pull out.

How reconstruction can proceed when critical medical and humanitarian assistance is being blocked — and without a word of protest from the Board of Peace — is beyond comprehension.

A reasonable prediction is that Trump’s board will have an indecent history that will thankfully come to an end once his administration ends. Peace — real peace, with dignity and justice — is beyond such a board’s capacity or interest.

Maybe that’s why Trump fell asleep during the three hours of speechmaking. After “solving” eight wars, perhaps he’s become bored with peace.