The UK will not take part in Donald Trump’s Board of Peace signing ceremony today because of « concerns about President Putin being part of something which is talking about peace », Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said. She said she supports the US president’s plan for peace in the Middle East, but said the focus should be shifted to Ukraine as Putin remains unwilling to end the war.
Mrs Cooper told BBC Breakfast: « There’s a huge amount of work to do. We won’t be one of the signatories today, because this is about a legal treaty that raises much broader issues. And we do also have concerns about President Putin being part of something which is talking about peace, when we have still not seen any signs from Putin that there will be a commitment to peace in Ukraine.
« And to be honest, that is also what we should be talking about. »
A joint statement released on Wednesday confirmed that Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Qatar, and will participate in the US president’s plan.
They join Israel, the UAE, Bahrain, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Morocco and Vietnam.
However, the Russian president quickly responded saying he was still going over the invitation and had not yet responded.
He said his country could provide $1 billion (£745 million) in frozen assets, adding that he mainly saw the Board of Peace as an opportunity for the Middle East.
A leaked document revealed that the board will begin operations once three states formally agree to it. They will be given permanent seats if they contribute $1 billion (£745 million), otherwise the renewable contracts last for three years.
The board is defined as an international organisation that will carry out peace-building missions under international law.
As well as serving as the US representative, Mr Trump is also listed as the chairman and has the authority to appoint members to the executive board, and create or get rid of subsidiary bodies.
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