Inside Trumps New Board of Peace

OPINION — “Donald J. Trump shall serve as inaugural Chairman of the Board of Peace, and he shall separately serve as inaugural representative of the United States of America…The Chairman [Trump] shall have exclusive authority to create, modify, or dissolve subsidiary entities as necessary or appropriate to fulfill the Board of Peace’s mission…The Chairman [Trump] shall at all times designate a successor for the role of Chairman. Replacement of the Chairman [Trump] may occur only following voluntary resignation or as a result of incapacity, as determined by a unanimous vote of the Executive Board, at which time the Chairman’s [Trump’s] designated successor shall immediately assume the position of the Chairman and all associated duties and authorities of the Chairman.”Those are quotes from the charter of the new, so-called Bureau of Peace (BOP) established by President Trump and signed January 22, at Davos, Switzerland by Trump for the United States and the leaders or representatives of 19 other countries.On January 16, White House announcement of BOP said the organization would provide “strategic oversight, mobilizing international resources, and ensuring accountability as Gaza transitions from conflict to peace and development.”However, six days later the BOP charter that President Trump released at Davos described its purpose in Chapter I this way: “The Board of Peace is an international organization that seeks to promote stability, restore dependable and lawful governance, and secure enduring peace in areas affected or threatened by conflict.”No mention of Gaza, as BOP’s sole focus, but rather the far broader “areas affected or threatened by conflict.”BOP’s expansion to a worldwide peacekeeping role provides President Trump with a new way to involve himself in international affairs, not just while he is U.S. President, but even after he leaves the White House.I will discuss below how President Trump sees all this happening and what it may mean. First, however, it’s worth seeing how BOP’s charter, gives its Chairman, Trump, total power over the organization even beyond what’s mentioned above.For example,, the charter says. “Membership in the Board of Peace is limited to States invited to participate by the Chairman…Each Member State shall serve a term of no more than three years from this Charter’s entry into force, subject to renewal by the Chairman…The Executive Board shall be selected by the Chairman…shall serve two-year terms, subject to removal by the Chairman and renewable at his discretion…[and] shall be led by a Chief Executive nominated by the Chairman and confirmed by a majority vote of the Executive Board…Decisions of the Executive Board shall be made by a majority of its members present and voting, including theChief Executive. Such decisions shall go into effect immediately, subject to veto by the Chairman at any time thereafter.”Beyond that, Chairman Trump, under the charter, shall convene BOP meetings, establish their locations, must approve the agendas and the persons from all states attending those meeting.Individually, the charter says Chairman Trump, “acting on behalf of the Board of Peace, is authorized to adopt resolutions or other directives, consistent with this Charter, to implement the Board of Peace’s mission.”As Chairman, Trump can also “dissolve [BOP] at such time as the Chairman considers necessary or appropriate, or at the end of every odd-numbered calendar year, unless renewed by the Chairman no later than November 21 of such odd-numbered calendar year.”The charter says, “The Executive Board shall provide for the rules and procedures with respect to the settling of all assets, liabilities, and obligations upon [BOP’s] dissolution,” but remember, decisions of the Executive Board are “subject to veto by the Chairman at any time.”In short, the BOP charter gives Trump total control over the organization and all its activities.At last Thursday’s press conference introducing BOP, Trump said, “This Board [BOP] has the chance to be one of the most consequential bodies ever created and it’s my enormous honor to serve as its chairman. I was very honored when they asked me to do it. We had an idea to do it, and then they came. They said, “You be the chairman.”Trump never explained who “they” were.Although 50 nations had been invited to join BOP, only 19 showed up to attend last Thursday’s announcement. Major Western allies, such as Canada, France and Germany have balked and voiced concerns that the body is designed to replace the United Nations.Trump, who just recently had the U.S. withdraw from many U.N. organizations, said at last Thursday BOP press conference, “I’ve always said the United Nations has got tremendous potential, has not used it, but there’s tremendous potential in the United Nations and you have some great people at the United Nations, but so far it hasn’t.”He repeated, “There’s tremendous potential with the United Nations and I think the combination of the Board of Peace with the kind of people we have here coupled with the United Nations can be something very, very unique for the world, for the world.”It is worth noting that the Trump approved as the BOP seal something in gold that’s very similar to that of the U.N. seal.Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, who helped put together BOP and is a founding member of its Executive Board, said at last Thursday’s event, he had put together a plan for rebuilding Gaza with the help of the U.N. as the Security Council had originally voted.But then Kushner added, “We’ve worked very, very well with them, this is why you need a new organization like the Board of Peace to work with the U.N.”Kushner specifically thanked U.N.’s Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, who it turns out gave an interview to Sky News at the time of the BOP announcement.Fletcher insisted, “The U.N. is not going anywhere…We’ve got to get out there, end wars, save lives, and we’re doing that.” Asked if Trump’s organization would replace the U.N., Fletcher responded, “Now I think we’re seeing America wanting to play a part in ending some of these conflicts and they want us [the U.N.] to be as effective as we can be.”Fletcher then gave a description of what I judge he sees as Trump’s different way of looking at how he, Trump, works with world leaders. Fletcher said. “There’s a difference between the old school statecraft that’s familiar to many people here at Davos and a sort of real estate craft, which is coming into this conversation now, which is more transactional. It’s very focused on results, not process. It’s focused on personal relationships and not always institutions. Yes, there’s an aspect of cliff-hanger and jeopardy to it. We never quite know what’s coming next, but it is part of the conversation. And if it can save lives and it ends wars then that is fine.”To me that is roll-the-dice diplomacy – in effect gambling on national security and foreign policy outcomes. Remember, Trump’s Atlantic City ventures that started in the 1980s. By 2004, all three Trump casinos and Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. were bankrupt.Trump, has rolled the dice on Venezuela, let’s see how that turns out. And hopefully, BOP won’t be like Trump’s casinos, although right now it does not look to me like a good gamble.The Cipher Brief is committed to publishing a range of perspectives on national security issues submitted by deeply experienced national security professionals. Opinions expressed are those of the author and do not represent the views or opinions of The Cipher Brief.Have a perspective to share based on your experience in the national security field? Send it to [email protected] for publication consideration.Read more expert-driven national security insights, perspective and analysis in The Cipher Brief

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