President Trump Invites Pope Leo XIV to Join the 'Board of Peace' for Gaza and the Vatican is Seriously Evaluating the Proposal
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President Donald Trump has begun forming his 'Board of Peace' as part of the Gaza ceasefire plan. The United States has invited more than 60 countries to participate in the council. Among them is the Holy See. This news was announced by Cardinal Pietro Parolin during a recent event.
Card. Parolin said, We have also received the invitation to the “Peace Council” for Gaza; the Pope has received it and we are seeing what to do, we are looking into it in depth. I believe it is an issue that requires some time to be considered and to give a response.
According to BBC, the UAE, Bahrain, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Morocco, Russia, Turkey, Egypt, and Vietnam have already signed up. Other countries that have joined include; Argentina, Indonesia, Israel, Jordan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Pakistan, Paraguay, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Uzbekistan.
Each country would have to contribute one billion dollars to secure a seat on the council. However, with the Holy See's invitation, Parolin stated that the Vatican will not make financial contributions.
Sources: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2026-01/cardinal-parolin-us-europe-tensions-worsen-international-climate.html and BBC
Each country would have to contribute one billion dollars to secure a seat on the council. However, with the Holy See's invitation, Parolin stated that the Vatican will not make financial contributions.
The invitation to the Board of Peace on Gaza
Regarding the Gaza Peace Board, the cardinal continued, "Trump is asking various countries to participate. I think I read in the newspaper this morning that Italy is also considering whether or not to join. We too have received an invitation to the Gaza Peace Board; the Pope has received it, and we're considering what to do. We're looking into it further. I think it's a question that requires some time to be considered and answered."
Still on the Board of Peace on Gaza, the cardinal said that the Holy See is not participating financially. "We're not even able to do so, but evidently we find ourselves in a different situation than other countries, so it will be a different consideration, but I believe the request will not be to participate financially."
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Cardinal Parolin then expressed his conviction that the conflict between Israel and Palestine is the key to peace throughout the Middle East: "When this is resolved," he commented, "the others will be resolved as well. The Holy See has recognized the State of Palestine for ten years." Finally, answering a question from a student at a scientific high school in Cosenza, the Secretary of State reiterated the "still viable" solution supported by the Holy See: "We still believe the formula of two peoples in two states is feasible, but the important thing is to find an agreement and give hope to the Palestinian people. Let's see what happens at the Peace Board on Gaza. It's about being creative and finding a formula that ensures the Palestinians' right to live in peace in their land."
Regarding the Gaza Peace Board, the cardinal continued, "Trump is asking various countries to participate. I think I read in the newspaper this morning that Italy is also considering whether or not to join. We too have received an invitation to the Gaza Peace Board; the Pope has received it, and we're considering what to do. We're looking into it further. I think it's a question that requires some time to be considered and answered."
Still on the Board of Peace on Gaza, the cardinal said that the Holy See is not participating financially. "We're not even able to do so, but evidently we find ourselves in a different situation than other countries, so it will be a different consideration, but I believe the request will not be to participate financially."
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Cardinal Parolin then expressed his conviction that the conflict between Israel and Palestine is the key to peace throughout the Middle East: "When this is resolved," he commented, "the others will be resolved as well. The Holy See has recognized the State of Palestine for ten years." Finally, answering a question from a student at a scientific high school in Cosenza, the Secretary of State reiterated the "still viable" solution supported by the Holy See: "We still believe the formula of two peoples in two states is feasible, but the important thing is to find an agreement and give hope to the Palestinian people. Let's see what happens at the Peace Board on Gaza. It's about being creative and finding a formula that ensures the Palestinians' right to live in peace in their land."
The Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was responding to a journalist's on the sidelines of the meeting "An International Dialogue to Connect Young People to the Future," organized on Wednesday, January 21, as the conclusion of the celebrations for the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Observatory for Independent Thinking, at the Antoniaum Auditorium in Rome.
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