Italy makes final call on joining Trump's "Board of Peace"

Rome, Italy - Italy will not take part in US President Donald Trump's "Board of Peace", Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Saturday, citing "insurmountable" constitutional issues.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani (l.) confirmed Saturday that the country would not be joining Trump's so-called "Board of Peace."
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani (l.) confirmed Saturday that the country would not be joining Trump's so-called "Board of Peace."  © Collage: SIMON WOHLFAHRT & SAUL LOEB / AFP

Trump launched his so-called "Board of Peace" at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, and some 19 countries have signed its founding charter.

But Italy's constitution bars the country from joining an organization led by a single foreign leader.

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Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a Trump ally, last month noted "constitutional problems" with joining, but suggested Trump could perhaps reopen the framework "to meet the needs not only of Italy, but also of other European countries".

Tajani appeared Saturday to rule that out.

"We cannot participate in the Board of Peace because there is a constitutional limit," he told the ANSA news agency.

"This is insurmountable from a legal standpoint," he said, the day after meeting US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Vice President JD Vance at the Olympics in Milan.

Although originally meant to oversee Gaza's rebuilding, the board's charter does not limit its role to the Palestinian territory and appears to want to rival the United Nations.

Key US allies, including France and Britain, have expressed doubts about joining.

Cover photo: Collage: SIMON WOHLFAHRT & SAUL LOEB / AFP

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