Germany on Monday thanked US President Donald Trump for extending Berlin an invitation to take up a seat on his so-called "Board of Peace." 

German government spokesman Steffen Cornelius said: "We are thankful for this invitation. We share the aim of pursuing peace in the world. It is in Germany's core interest to end the conflict in Gaza for good."

Originally intended as a mechanism for rebuilding the devastated Gaza Strip, Trump has since framed the body as engaged in bringing about "enduring peace" worldwide.

"The Board of Peace is an international organization that seeks to promote stability, restore dependable and lawful governance, and secure enduring peace in areas affected or threatened by conflict," the board's charter reads.     

Trump's pay-to-play peace scheme

Trump has now asked dozens of nations to join, saying that those who put up $1 billion (€860 million) in the board's first year will be allowed to remain a member beyond that time.

Among those invited by Trump — who appointed himself chairman of the proposed organization as well as dictating that he alone has the power to invite new members to it — are Russian President Vladimir Putin, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and numerous other heads of state.

Germany, like other invited nations, took care to reiterate its faith in the United Nations as the ultimate international arbiter of peace when it comes to conflict resolution.

Trump, who recently announced that the US would withdraw from 66 international treaties and bodies — many of them tied to the UN — appears to see the new body as a potential replacement for the UN, urging invitees to have "the courage to depart from approaches and institutions that have too often failed."

Who has been invited?

Envisioned as a second-phase of the "peace plan" that Trump put forth to halt the bloodshed in Gaza, a number of world leaders have or can be expected to receive invitations over the coming days.

Beyond naming himself chairman of the board and appointing a handful of loyal friends and family, Trump has also extended invitations to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi, Argentine President Javier Milei and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia is "currently reviewing all the details of this offer, and we hope to establish contact with the American side to clarify all the nuances."

A spokesman for the Belarus Foreign Ministry said Monday, "We are ready to participate in the activity of the Peace Board and expect and hope that the organization will greatly expand its scope and powers beyond the limits of the initiative."

World leaders tepid about Trump's 'Board of Peace' invitation

France has suggested it will balk at the invitation, with a source close to President Emmanuel Macron saying, France "does not intend to answer favorably," adding that the board's charter "goes beyond the sole framework of Gaza."

Further, the source told France's AFP news agency, "It raises major questions, particularly regarding respect for the principles and structure of the United Nations, which under no circumstances can be called into question."

Canada says Prime Minister Mark Carney will accept his invitation but added that Ottawa will not pay Trump's $1 billion membership fee in a statement reading, "Canada will not pay for a seat on the board, nor has that been requested of Canada at this time."

Edited by: Roshni Majumdar