Greece and Europe before the decisions on the "Trump Council", who accepted the invitation and who did not

The Peace Council was initially envisaged by the peace plan for Gaza and is even included in UN Security Council Resolution 2803 on Gaza, and had been accepted, albeit with reservations, by all the countries that participated in the Sharm el-Sheikh Conference.

However, the foreign governments that received the invitation to participate in the Peace Council in the previous days were surprised to find that the accompanying documents also included the Council's statute, which of course had no connection with the original initiative. The Peace Council, as envisioned by the American president, is not limited to Gaza alone nor has a specific duration, but on the contrary aspires to operate in competition and as an alternative to the UN itself, while creating major issues regarding its legitimacy and its institutional status.

Many European governments have already expressed their concerns and reservations about participating in such an organization, with the French government at the forefront, while Germany and Norway are also moving in the same direction, already rejecting the invitation.

The Greek government is thoroughly examining Trump's proposal in both its political and legal dimensions, a task undertaken in recent days by Foreign Minister G. Gerapetritis and is coordinating with partners inside and outside the European Union, in order to formulate its final position and in the light, of course, of its participation in the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member. According to information, Athens is reluctant to accept the invitation of the American president to participate in a body that goes beyond the clear provisions contained in UN Security Council Resolution 2803 on Gaza and is intended to replace the UN as the guardian of peace and international legitimacy.

The way the invitations have been drafted and the recipients have been chosen, it is understood that a rejection of the invitation will be perceived negatively by President Trump, with all that this implies for his relationship from now on with those who will not contribute to the implementation of his plan. On the other hand, however, accepting the invitation also means legitimizing a process for which no one knows how it may be used in the future and, at the same time, leads to further degradation and undermining of the UN itself.

President Trump has reportedly already secured the participation of at least ten countries, so that he can announce the formation of the Peace Council tomorrow in Davos and at the same time attack, as expected, those countries that have treated this specific initiative with caution. Countries that have accepted Trump's invitation are said to include Hungary, Bahrain, Morocco, Belarus, the United Arab Emirates, Albania and possibly Armenia and Kazakhstan. Canada is said to be welcoming the invitation, but has said it will not pay the $1 billion that the US president is demanding for a country to have a permanent seat on the Council, and it is doubtful that the other countries that have responded to President Trump's invitation will pay that amount.

It is striking that Turkey, despite its initial enthusiasm upon receiving Trump's invitation, has not yet responded, while Foreign Minister H. Fidan had a telephone conversation with Marco Rubio yesterday regarding both the formation of the Council and the developments in Syria, where Turkey's permanent pursuit of the US abandoning its Kurdish allies seems to be being satisfied.

Trump's initiative creates even greater concern, as the countries he has invited include Russia, at a time when this country poses the greatest threat to peace with its war against Ukraine. This is also the reason why the Ukrainian president appears negative about his country's participation in the Peace Council.

The Council was initially presented as the body overseeing the reconstruction of Gaza, but its statute, which was distributed to foreign capitals, does not limit its role exclusively to the Palestinian territories. According to its founding charter, the Council will be chaired by Donald Trump and will be an international organization that seeks to "promote stability, restore dignity, and promote peace and security in the region.loyal and legitimate governance and to ensure lasting peace in areas affected by or threatened by conflict.”

The Council will undertake the task of “building peace in accordance with international law” and its president will be Donald Trump, who will have a dual capacity, as he will also represent the United States. As president of the Council, Donald Trump will select the members of the Executive Council, who will be “world leaders” and will serve two-year terms, with the possibility of their removal by the president.

The most interesting fact is that the president of the Council will be for life and can be replaced only in the event of “voluntary resignation or incapacity,” while he will also have the right to veto all decisions, which will require a majority of the members present.

Council members will serve three-year terms, with the exception of member states that contribute $1 billion within the Council's first year of operation, thereby securing permanent membership.

According to AFP, which has the Council's charter, the Executive Council, which will be chaired by Donald Trump, will include seven members, all connected to the US president, confirming concerns that the creation of a personal "UN IX" is being sought: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Steve Witkoff, Trump's special negotiator, Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, Tony Blair, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Mark Rowan, an American billionaire financier, Ajay Banga, president of the World Bank, and Robert Gabriel, a close Trump aide on the National Security Council.