India cautious on US ‘board of peace’ proposal

As India received an invitation on Friday from US President Donald Trump to be part of the "Board of Peace" that will work towards bringing lasting peace to Gaza, a former Indian diplomat and a strategic affairs expert said there is "no clarity" at present on the contours of the board and New Delhi will examine this proposal "very carefully". Another strategic affairs expert, a professor at a leading private university based in Haryana, conjectured that it is in the context of Gaza that people are interested in it, but this Board of Peace has a "much more ambitious scheme of things that Trump is right now after". On January 16, in a social media post, Trump wrote, "It is my Great Honor to announce that THE BOARD OF PEACE has been formed. The Members of the Board will be announced shortly, but I can say with certainty that it is the Greatest and Most Prestigious Board ever assembled at any time, any place. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" A day ago, US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, shared on X a letter sent by Trump to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, inviting him to be a part of the "Board of Peace" that will work towards bringing lasting peace to Gaza and embark on a "bold new approach" to resolving "global conflict". Former diplomat Veena Sikri, a keen watcher of global affairs, said while the Board of Peace has been announced by President Trump, its exact contours are "not clear" at present. She said the step seems to stem from his 20-point roadmap to bring peace to the Middle East, adding that Trump had also mentioned in his announcement last year a comprehensive plan to end the Gaza conflict. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in November 2025 had overwhelmingly adopted Resolution 2803, welcoming and endorsing "this vision". "Now it is time to turn all of these Dreams into reality. At the heart of the Plan is The Board of Peace, the most impressive and consequential Board ever assembled, which will be established as a new International Organization and Transitional Governing Administration," Trump wrote in the letter dated January 16. The US president said the effort will be to bring together a "distinguished group of nations" ready to shoulder the "noble responsibility" of building lasting peace -- "an honor reserved for those prepared to lead by example, and brilliantly invest in a secure and prosperous future for generations to come". Sikri, also a strategic affairs expert who served as India's high commissioner to Bangladesh from 2003-2006, said New Delhi is rightly "cautions" about this proposal and "will examine this invitation very carefully" as a lot of aspects about this Board, its founding executive board and other associated groups such as the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG) and its eventual mandate remain "unclear" and "unanswered". The Trump administration has already announced that the Board of Peace will play an essential role in fulfilling Trump's 20-point plan of providing strategic oversight, mobilising international resources and ensuring accountability as "Gaza transitions from conflict to peace and development". The 20-point plan includes making Gaza a deradicalised terror-free zone that does not pose a threat to its neighbours, and that is redeveloped for the benefit of the people of the strip. The White House last week announced forming a founding executive board to operationalise the Board of Peace's vision. The members of the executive committee included US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, former British prime minister Tony Blair, US special envoy to the Middle-East Steve Witkoff, businessman and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and World Bank president Ajay Banga. The other two members of the committee are Marc Rowan, the CEO of New York-headquartered private equity firm Apollo Global Management, and Robert Gabriel, a US national security adviser. The executive board will oversee another administrative group called the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG). Citing draft charter for the proposed group, international media houses, including Bloomberg and the New York Times, have also reported that members of "Board of Peace" can seek a permanent seat in it if they will pay "at least USD 1 billion". Gor, while sharing Trump's letter, posted on X, "Honored to convey @POTUS invitation to Prime Minister @narendramodi to participate in the Board of Peace which will bring lasting peace to Gaza. The Board will support effective governance to achieve stability and prosperity!" The US president said it was his great honour to invite the prime minister to join him in a "critically historic and magnificent effort to solidify peace" in the Middle East and, at the same time, to embark on a "bold new approach to resolving Global Conflict". Khinvraj Jangid, professor and director, Jindal Center for Israel Studies at Sonepat-based O P Jindal Global University, said, "This Board of Peace, apparently doesn't have a mandate only for Gaza". "In fact, the document doesn't say the word Gaza as such. This Board of Peace is under the guidance of Donald Trump that will advise and make all the interventions in many global conflicts," he told PTI. It is in the context of Gaza that people are interested in it but this Board of Peace has a much more ambitious scheme of things that Trump is right now after," Jangid argued.