Washington, 19 February 2026 (dpa/MIA) - The first meeting of US President Donald Trump’s controversial Board of Peace was held in Washington on Thursday, focusing on the Gaza Strip and a multibillion-dollar aid package for the territory.

Trump said Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan and Kuwait had pledged $7 billion toward a humanitarian and reconstruction package for Gaza.

In addition, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is collecting a further $2 billion in support for the war-ravaged Palestinian territory, Trump said.

World soccer governing body FIFA will also help raise $75 million for football-related projects in Gaza.

The United States itself will provide $10 billion for the Board of Peace, Trump added. He did not give details on how the money given to the board he created would be used.

To help secure a lasting peace, five countries are prepared to send troops to Gaza, Trump said. He named Morocco, Albania, Kosovo, Kazakhstan and Indonesia but did not provide further details.

The Board of Peace is tasked with establishing a so-called International Stabilization Force (ISF), which would maintain order in Gaza, monitor the ceasefire between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas and help ensure a durable peace.

Several predominantly Muslim countries had previously signalled willingness to contribute troops, though Indonesia is the only country so far to make a concrete announcement.

Jakarta has indicated it could deploy between 5,000 and 8,000 soldiers. It was not immediately clear how many troops the other countries would contribute.

Challenge to the UN order?

Trump announced the Board of Peace, which he chairs, in January at the World Economic Forum in Davos. The council is intended to resolve global conflicts.

Contrary to initial expectations, it is not exclusively dedicated to monitoring the Gaza peace process. Critics see the board as a competitor to the United Nations, which Trump routinely criticizes.

Many European countries, like France and Germany, refuse to participate in the board, which currently has about two dozen members, including Hungary, Israel, Belarus, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

But several nations that are not officially on the board sent a senior representative to observe Thursday's event, including Germany.

The talks took place at the US Institute of Peace in Washington. The institute, which was established by Congress in 1984, was recently renamed the Donald J Trump Institute of Peace.

Photo: White House