Argentina to submit sign-up to Trump’s Board of Peace to Congress for approval

President Javier Milei has given the order for his government to submit a bill to Argentina’s Congress asking it to rubber stamp the nation’s sign up to Donald Trump’s new “Board of Peace.”

Trump launched the body on the margins of the World Economic Forum in Davos last week, presenting it as a mechanism to promote what he described as “lasting peace” in regions affected by conflict, particularly in the Middle East. 

Leaders and senior officials from 19 countries, including Argentina, appeared alongside the US president to sign the board’s founding charter.

The initiative has already drawn scepticism from several traditional US allies. France and Britain have publicly expressed doubts about the scope and credibility of the project, amid concerns over its governance and the potential involvement of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russia’s forces have been fighting in Ukraine since the full-scale invasion launched in 2022.

Milei, one of Trump’s closest international political allies, has sharply reoriented Argentina’s foreign policy since taking office in December 2023, prioritising alignment with Washington and distancing the country from multilateral forums he has criticised as inefficient or ideologically driven. 

His administration has cultivated close ties with the Trump White House, framing the relationship as central to Argentina’s global strategy.

To formalise Argentina’s participation in the Board of Peace, the Milei government plans to seek ratification from both chambers of Congress, the lower house Chamber of Deputies and the upper house Senate. While the Executive branch can sign international charters, congressional approval is required for full legal adherence.

Extraordinary sessions of Congress, convened by the President ahead of the regular legislative calendar, are scheduled to begin on February 2 and run until the end of the month. Government sources at the Casa Rosada acknowledge that the packed agenda makes full approval unlikely during those sessions, but say the aim is to secure preliminary backing before final ratification in March.

In recent days, the Board of Peace’s official X account has published a series of posts welcoming its founding members. Alongside Argentina and the United States, the list includes Cambodia, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Hungary, Egypt, El Salvador and Indonesia. 

Of the 20 signatories, only a handful are classified as full democracies, and the United States is the sole permanent member of the United Nations Security Council among them.

Although initially presented as a framework to oversee Gaza’s post-war reconstruction, the board’s charter does not explicitly limit its mandate to the Palestinian territory. The breadth of its stated objectives, combined with its institutional design, has prompted questions among diplomats about whether it is intended to operate as a parallel forum to the United Nations (UN), an organisation Trump has repeatedly criticised.

The body will be led by Trump, who has veto power over all decisions and controls the institutional agenda.

Countries seeking a "permanent seat" on the body must pay US$1 billion. However, Argentina will not have to pay because it has not yet decided whether to pursue such a full membership and has a three-year grace period to make that decision.

– TIMES/NA