German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul speaks to the press at the end of his U.S. trip on January 13, 2026, at Washington, DC | Photo: Michael Kappeler/dpa
Berlin: Germany is hoping for a seat on the so-called Board of Peace for Gaza, Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the body’s formation to oversee the transitional administration of the coastal strip.
Germany is prepared to assume responsibility in this “important institution,” Wadephul said after talks in Berlin with his Austrian counterpart Beate Meinl-Reisinger.
“We expect concrete talks to take place very soon and perhaps also an invitation,” he said.
Wadephul also expressed hopes that the second phase of the Gaza peace process initiated under U.S. mediation will now begin: “The establishment of this Board of Peace is necessary for this.”
Trump posted on his Truth Social platform on Thursday that the “Board of Peace” had been formed.
The names of the members would be announced soon, said the president, who will chair what he billed as “the Greatest and Most Prestigious Board ever assembled at any time, any place.”
The board will oversee the work of the so-called National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, a group of 14 Palestinians – said to have no ties to Hamas – which met for the first time in Cairo earlier on Thursday.
They are to oversee daily life and basic services in the Gaza Strip, which has been largely destroyed in more than two years of war.
Additional Inputs from StratPost
The White House said on Friday, President Trump had appointed the following individuals to the Executive Board of the Board of Peace:
- Nickolay Mladenov – High Representative for Gaza
- Marco Rubio – United States Secretary of State
- Steve Witkoff – United States Special Envoy to the Middle East
- Jared Kushner – Donald Trump’s son-in-law
- Tony Blair – Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
- Marc Rowan – CEO of Apollo Global Management
- Ajay Banga – President of the World Bank
- Robert Gabriel Jr. – American political advisor
The chairman of the Board of Peace is President Trump, who has invited Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and Argentine President Javier Milei to join the Board of Peace.
‘Each Executive Board member will oversee a defined portfolio critical to Gaza’s stabilisation and long-term success, including, but not limited to, governance capacity-building, regional relations, reconstruction, investment attraction, large-scale funding, and capital mobilisation,’ said the White House statement.
‘In support of this operating model, the Chairman has appointed Aryeh Lightstone and Josh Gruenbaum as senior advisors to the Board of Peace, charged with leading day-to-day strategy and operations, and translating the Board’s mandate and diplomatic priorities into disciplined execution,’ the statement added.
The White House announced the appointment of the ‘the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), a vital step forward in implementing Phase Two of his Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict—a 20-point roadmap for lasting peace, stability, reconstruction, and prosperity in the region.’
The NCAG will be led by Dr. Ali Sha’ath, said the White House, who is a technocrat. ‘Mladenov, an Executive Board member, will serve as the High Representative for Gaza. In this capacity, he will act as the on-the-ground link between the Board of Peace and the NCAG. He will support the Board’s oversight of all aspects of Gaza’s governance, reconstruction, and development, while ensuring coordination across civilian and security pillars,’ said the statement.
The White House added further, ‘To establish security, preserve peace, and establish a durable terror-free environment, Major General Jasper Jeffers has been appointed Commander of the International Stabilization Force (ISF), where he will lead security operations, support comprehensive demilitarisation, and enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid and reconstruction materials.’
General Jaspers has been Commander of U.S. Special Operations Command Central and was appointed ‘co-chair, alongside Senior Advisor to President Trump, Amos Hochstein, for the implementation and monitoring mechanism of the cessation of hostilities between Israel and Lebanon,’ according to the U.S. Central Command.
Finally, the White House listed the following individuals as members of a a Gaza Executive Board to support the Office of the High Representative and the NCAG:
- Steve Witkoff – United States Special Envoy to the Middle East
- Jared Kushner – Donald Trump’s son-in-law
- Minister Hakan Fidan – Turkish Foreign Minister
- Ali Al-Thawadi – Qatari diplomat
- General Hassan Rashad – Director of Egypt’s General Intelligence Directorate
- Tony Blair – Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
- Marc Rowan – CEO of Apollo Global Management
- Minister Reem Al-Hashimy – Minister of State for International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates
- Nickolay Mladenov – High Representative for Gaza
- Yakir Gabay – Cypriot-Israeli billionaire
- Sigrid Kaag – United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process
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