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Donald Trump shook the international scene again by offering Vladimir Putin and the Belarusian dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko a seat on the so-called Board of Peace, the body promoted by Washington to guide the reconstruction of Gaza and, according to Trump himself, “to become a model of global governance for resolving conflicts.”
The Kremlin officially confirmed that it has received the invitation. "The United States has invited Vladimir Putin to join the Peace Board," declared the Russian spokesperson, Dmitri Peskov, who, according to El País, added that Moscow is "studying the details of the proposal."
Belarus, on the other hand, has already signed its accession. "We are willing to participate in the activities of the Peace Board and hope that this organization expands its reach and authority beyond the mandate that has been proposed," announced the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Minsk in a statement released by Reuters.
The gesture has sparked a wave of reactions in Europe. France declined the invitation, believing that the committee "could call the UN into question," and the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, issued an indirect message reminding that "the General Assembly remains the parliament of nations."
Meanwhile, in Washington, the initiative has been seen as a foreign policy move aimed at reaffirming Trump's global leadership, even above the traditional multilateral system.
The invited countries and the composition of the committee
Until January 20, 2026, the composition of the Peace Board is still uncertain. According to diplomatic sources cited by Bloomberg and El País, the countries officially involved or invited are:
- United States: founding country and direction of the organization (Trump, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff).
- Belarus: membership confirmed and signed by Aleksandr Lukashenko.
- Russia: guest; the Kremlin is considering its participation.
- France: invited; has declined to join.
- Israel: invited; still without an official response.
- Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan: mentioned by Bloomberg as countries in discussions to join.
Therefore, only the United States and Belarus are officially part of the new committee, while Russia evaluates its response and other countries maintain a wait-and-see approach.
A guest under an international arrest warrant
The problem is not only political but also ethical and legal. Since March 2023, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has maintained an active arrest warrant against Putin for war crimes in Ukraine, particularly for the illegal deportation of children from occupied areas to Russian territory.
The chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, then stated that there were "reasonable grounds to believe that the Russian president bears individual criminal responsibility" for those actions.
Although the ICC does not have the direct ability to detain Putin, the indictment makes him the first head of state from a permanent member of the UN Security Council to be under an international arrest warrant. More than 120 countries that are parties to the Rome Statute are obligated to detain him if he sets foot on their territory.
Bucha: the crime that awakened the world
The decision of the ICC cannot be understood without recalling the massacre in Bucha, the small Ukrainian town where, following the Russian withdrawal in March 2022, more than 400 bodies of executed civilians were found, many showing signs of torture.
The images released by Reuters and The New York Times showed bodies with their hands tied and gunshot wounds to the head. “Bucha is a crime scene,” stated Prosecutor Khan after visiting the site.
Although the arrest warrant against Putin formally focuses on the deportation of minors, investigators believe that the massacre in Bucha was the moral turning point that spurred international legal action.
The prosecutors in The Hague continue to gather evidence to expand the case to include other war crimes committed by the Russian army in Ukraine.
A controversial guardian of peace
The contrast is striking: while the world remembers Bucha, Trump offers Putin a seat on a committee to promote world peace.
For some analysts, the movement aims to integrate Moscow into a cooperation framework controlled by Washington. For others, it represents a trivialization of crime and a dangerous signal of impunity.
The Kremlin, which insists on denying war crimes in Ukraine, views the invitation as recognition of its global influence. However, in a world where the images of Bucha remain etched in collective memory, the announcement generates backlash.
While Putin assesses his response, Trump consolidates his image as a leader who challenges the boundaries of the international order. However, his "Peace Board," even before it is born, already carries an insurmountable contradiction: attempting to pacify the world alongside those who made it bleed.
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