The Vatican has declined to take part in President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” initiative, with the Holy See’s top diplomat saying international crises should be handled through the United Nations and warning against creating parallel structures that could weaken established multilateral mechanisms.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State, said the Holy See would not participate in the board and stressed that the Vatican’s view was shaped by a preference for existing international frameworks. Speaking to journalists, Parolin said, “Our position is that we do not want to become part of structures that stand outside the international system.” He added: “We believe that the United Nations should remain the point of reference for international cooperation and for resolving the main problems of the world.”
Parolin’s remarks came as the White House confirmed Trump would convene the first formal meeting of the Board of Peace in Washington on Thursday, with more than 20 countries expected to attend. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said participating states had pledged more than $5bn for reconstruction and humanitarian efforts in Gaza and had committed to providing thousands of personnel for an international stabilisation force intended to support security and governance there.
Asked about the Vatican’s decision not to join, Leavitt described it as “deeply unfortunate”. She defended the initiative as an international effort backed by a coalition of countries and said, “This is a legitimate organization where there are tens of member countries from around the world.”
The Board of Peace was launched at the World Economic Forum in Davos on 23 January, when Trump signed documents establishing the body as part of a broader plan centred on Gaza. Reuters reported that the board’s creation was endorsed by a United Nations Security Council resolution linked to Trump’s Gaza plan, which followed months of international pressure for a new political framework in the territory after repeated rounds of conflict and a fragile ceasefire announced in October.
According to Reuters, Thursday’s meeting is expected to focus on Gaza, where the White House says the board will coordinate funding, humanitarian assistance and security arrangements. The administration has portrayed the initiative as a means to accelerate reconstruction while preventing a return to large-scale fighting, with an emphasis on an international stabilisation force and a temporary governance structure until a longer-term political settlement is agreed.
Even before the meeting, the board has drawn scrutiny from allies and critics who fear it could become a US-led alternative to existing institutions. Reuters reported that some European officials have questioned the concentration of power in a body chaired by the US president and the potential for it to expand beyond Gaza to other global conflicts. Trump has said the board would broaden its remit, a shift that has intensified concerns it could compete with the UN’s central role in conflict resolution.
Parolin’s comments were framed as a defence of multilateralism rather than a direct attack on Washington. But his language reflected long-standing Vatican caution about international initiatives that bypass established diplomatic channels. In his comments, Parolin indicated that the Holy See was not opposed to efforts aimed at peace, but argued they should be pursued through internationally recognised mechanisms. “We do not want to overlap with the United Nations,” he said, adding that the Holy See’s diplomatic work is closely tied to supporting UN principles and processes.
The Vatican’s decision also reflects a wider, increasingly public distance between Pope Leo XIV and Trump on several issues, particularly migration and the treatment of foreign nationals in the United States. Reuters reported that in November 2025 the pope renewed criticism of Trump’s hard-line immigration policies, saying foreigners living in the US were being treated in a manner that was “extremely disrespectful”. He urged Americans “to look for ways of treating people humanely, treating people with the dignity that they have.”
Leo, the first US-born pontiff, has repeatedly argued that migration policy must be rooted in respect for human dignity while acknowledging that states have a right to control their borders. Reuters said he had previously described the treatment of immigrants as “inhuman”, comments that prompted backlash from some conservative Catholic voices in the US.
In Vatican messaging on foreign policy, Leo has placed particular emphasis on multilateral diplomacy and the moral limits of force. In a January address to the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See, he warned that “war is back in vogue” and argued that international life was increasingly shaped by deterrence and power rather than dialogue. He said the post-Second World War principle prohibiting the use of force to violate borders “has been completely undermined”, describing the trend as a threat to the rule of law and peaceful coexistence.
That broader approach provides context for the Holy See’s reluctance to join a US-led structure with an unclear mandate and evolving ambitions. Vatican diplomacy, shaped by decades of engagement with the UN, has typically sought to strengthen international law and humanitarian protections rather than endorse ad hoc coalitions that can be perceived as instruments of one government’s foreign policy.
In its reporting on Parolin’s remarks, Vatican News said the cardinal emphasised the UN’s role as the correct forum for managing crisis situations and underlined the need for “shared rules and common structures” in addressing conflict. The Vatican’s refusal to participate does not appear to have closed the door on engagement with any outcomes of the board’s work, particularly where humanitarian assistance is concerned. But it signals resistance to the idea that the Board of Peace could set the terms for international responses to war and instability.
The political stakes are high because the board is being framed by the White House as central to Trump’s Gaza policy. Under the administration’s plan, the board was originally meant to supervise temporary governance arrangements in Gaza, while coordinating reconstruction and humanitarian deliveries. The White House says the plan is already “well under way” and portrays Thursday’s meeting as a milestone in securing financial commitments and deploying stabilisation personnel.
Regional Middle East powers including Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have joined the board, along with major emerging nations such as Indonesia, Reuters reported. But it also said traditional Western allies have been more cautious, reflecting unease about how the board would interact with existing diplomatic efforts and whether it could draw authority away from multilateral institutions.
For the Vatican, the decision to stay out appears rooted in a calculation that membership could compromise the Holy See’s claim to neutrality and its capacity to act as a diplomatic bridge in conflicts. The Catholic Church maintains relations with a wide range of states and non-state actors and often positions itself as a mediator or moral voice rather than a participant in geopolitical blocs.
The Vatican also faces sensitivities around Gaza and the wider Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where it has consistently advocated a two-state solution and defended the rights of civilians. In his January address, Pope Leo reiterated that humanitarian law “must always prevail” and warned against attacks on civilians and essential infrastructure. He also reaffirmed the Holy See’s support for a two-state solution as an institutional framework for meeting the aspirations of both Palestinians and Israelis.
Whether Trump’s Board of Peace can deliver on its stated aims remains uncertain. The White House says member states will pledge money and personnel, but questions persist about governance, security, and the political pathway beyond stabilisation. Meanwhile, the Vatican’s stance underscores the risk that the initiative could deepen divides among global actors, particularly if it is seen as replacing or sidelining the UN rather than working through it.
As Trump prepares to chair Thursday’s meeting before travelling to Georgia, the administration is pressing allies and partners to treat the Board of Peace as a cornerstone of its foreign policy. The Holy See, however, has made clear it will not join, insisting that peace efforts should be anchored in the UN system and warning against new bodies that sit outside the international order built after the Second World War.
