Davos, Switzerland - President Donald Trump on Thursday kicked off his so-called "Board of Peace" at Davos with a signing ceremony for a body with a $1 billion membership fee and a controversial list of invitees.

A group of leaders and senior officials from 19 countries gathered on stage with Trump to put their names to the founding charter of the body.

The Republican – who named himself chairman of the Board of Peace – said they were "in most cases very popular leaders, some cases not so popular. That's the way it goes in life."

Originally meant to essentially take over Gaza after its destruction by Israel, the organization's charter now imagines itself as a forum for resolving international conflicts, sparking concerns that Trump wants it to rival the United Nations, with which he promised to work "in conjunction."

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The Board of Peace's potential membership has sparked outrage. Invitations were extended to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who invaded Ukraine four years ago, and Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court over war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Permanent members must also pay $1 billion to join, leading to criticisms that the board could become a "pay to play" version of the UN Security Council.

Key US allies including France and Britain have expressed skepticism, with Britain saying Thursday it would not attend the ceremony. Putin has meanwhile kept his distance, despite Trump's claims to the contrary.

The members on stage largely held close ties to Trump, including far-right leaders such as Hungary's Viktor Orban and Argentina's Javier Milei, or a wish to show their allegiance to the US president.

Officials from Bahrain, Morocco, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Pakistan, Paraguay, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, and Mongolia also signed the document with Trump.

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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the ceremony that the board's focus was "first and foremost on making sure that this peace deal in Gaza becomes enduring."

Trump, however, ordered Hamas to under the next phase of the Gaza "ceasefire" accord or it will be the "end of them."

The launch of the board came a day after Israel committed the latest in a long line of ceasefire violations by killing three journalists in Gaza, including a CBS contributor.

It has also been overshadowed by Trump's aggressive moves to annex Greenland, which he repeated at Davos in a speech Wednesday, before partially backing down on threats to impose tariffs on European allies who oppose him.