NEW YORK CITY: The US ambassador to the UN, Mike Waltz, on Wednesday called on member states to commit “time and treasure” to Gaza’s recovery, as he urged countries to back the newly created “Board of Peace” which he said would soon announce more than $5 billion in reconstruction pledges.
The US-led board, established in November under UN Security Council Resolution 2803, is due to hold its inaugural meeting in Washington on Thursday, which will bring together 27 nations, including Saudi Arabia and several other Gulf Arab and Muslim-majority countries.
“The Board of Peace is a board of action,” Waltz said, arguing it marked a break from what he described as the failed approaches of the past.
The board will oversee the implementation of US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan, which includes the deployment of an international stabilization force and the introduction of a technocratic National Committee for the Administration of Gaza.
Waltz said thousands of troops have been pledged to the stabilization force, which would ensure security and help establish a “durable, terror-free environment.”
