Pope Invited To Join Trump's Gaza 'Board Of Peace', Says Vatican

Last Updated:January 21, 2026, 21:40 IST

Pope Leo XIV has been invited to Trump's Board of Peace for Gaza, but the Vatican is considering its response. Norway declined, while Hungary and UAE accepted the invitation.

Pope Leo XIV (Vatican News/X)

The Vatican on Wednesday said Pope Leo XIV has been invited to join US President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace".

“We’ve also received this invitation and the Pope received it and we are looking at what to do. We are researching and I believe it’s a question that demands a little time to be considered in order to give a response," Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Paroli said.

The Norwegian government on Wednesday became the latest to decline US President Donald Trump’s Gaza Board of Peace.

“The American proposal raises a number of questions" requiring “further dialogue with the United States", State Secretary Kristoffer Thoner said in a statement.

“Norway will therefore not join the proposed arrangements for the Board of Peace, and will therefore not attend a signing ceremony in Davos," Thoner said. Norway would continue its close cooperation with the United States, he added.

The announcement comes amid reports that several other invited countries have also declined to join the initiative.

Trump’s board was conceived to oversee rebuilding of Gaza. According to its charter, the scope is not limited to the Palestinian territory.

Meanwhile, the US administration has asked countries to pay $1 billion to secure a permanent spot on the board.

The White House said this body will focus on issues such as “governance capacity-building, regional relations, reconstruction, investment attraction, large-scale funding and capital mobilisation".

Trump has invited leaders of at least 60 countries, including India, to join the Board of Peace for Gaza. Many, including Hungary and UAE, have accepted the invite.

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