“I don’t think there’s ever been anything more powerful and prestigious,” Donald Trump said at the opening of the first meeting of the Gaza Peace Board in Washington .
"What we're doing is very simple: peace. It's called the Peace Council , and it's based on a word that's easy to say but difficult to produce: peace," he added.
"Almost everyone has accepted the invitation to the Board of Peace, and those who haven't will. Some are playing it cool, but it doesn't work; you can't play it cool with me. They're playing a little, but they're all joining in, most of them right away."
The US president announced that several countries (Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, and Kuwait) have pledged over $7 billion for reconstruction. The United States will contribute $10 billion .
The Peace Board, Trump said, will "monitor and ensure" that the United Nations, "which has great potential," "functions properly." And if it needs financial assistance, the Board is ready to step in.
Five countries have offered soldiers for the International Stabilization Force (ISF) in the Strip: Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania .
Trump also addressed other issues, starting with Iran: "Without a deal, bad things will happen. We'll find out what happens with Iran in about 10 days." He joked about the missed Nobel Peace Prize: "Norway announced it would host the next meeting. I was hoping they'd announce they were giving me the Nobel. I don't care about the prize anyway, I just want to save lives."
With the signing of several unanimously approved resolutions on raising funds for Gaza and the bang of a gavel, Donald Trump concluded the first meeting of the Board of Peace. Immediately afterward, the strains of "YMCA," the tycoon's campaign theme, began to play. FIFA President Gianni Infantino was also present.
A small crowd of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered outside the Donald Trump Institute of Peace before the meeting opened. Some of the protesters waved large signs reading, "Donald Trump, go to hell."
(Unioneonline)