Portugal will only join the Peace Council created by the US president if the organisation’s remit is strictly limited to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel said today Tuesday, 27th January.
“The ‘Board of Peace’ is entirely acceptable if it is confined to Gaza,” Rangel stated while speaking at a conference on the “Future of European Security” at the Gulbenkian Foundation, in Lisbon.
The body “was proposed by the United States specifically for the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, and we would like it to remain limited to that,” he added, noting that this position is shared by other countries, including Brazil.
Formally established last Thursday, the Peace Council was announced as an organisation intended to implement Washington’s plan to bring an end to the war in the Gaza Strip. However, the founding treaty sets out a far broader mandate, presenting the body as an alternative to the United Nations.
Chaired by Donald Trump, the Peace Council has sent invitations to several countries, including Portugal, with the cost of a permanent seat reportedly set at one billion dollars (€854.3 million).
Source: LUSA
