Trump gets pledges for Gaza reconstruction and troop commitments at
inaugural Board of Peace talks
[February 20, 2026]
By AAMER MADHANI and MATTHEW LEE
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump announced Thursday at the
inaugural Board of Peace meeting that nine members have agreed to pledge
$7 billion toward a Gaza relief package and five countries have agreed
to deploy troops as part of an international stabilization force for the
war-battered Palestinian territory.
While lauding the pledges, Trump faces the unresolved challenge of
disarming Hamas, a sticking point that threatens to delay or even derail
the Gaza ceasefire plan that his administration notched as a major
foreign policy win.
The dollars promised, while significant, represent a small fraction of
the estimated $70 billion needed to rebuild the territory decimated
after two years of war between Israel and Hamas. While Trump praised
allies for making the commitments of funding and troops, he offered no
detail on when the pledges would be implemented.
“Every dollar spent is an investment in stability and the hope of new
and harmonious (region),” Trump said. He added, “The Board of Peace is
showing how a better future can be built right here in this room."
Trump also announced the U.S. was pledging $10 billion for the board but
didn’t specify what the money will be used for. It also was not clear
where the U.S. money would come from — a sizable pledge that would need
to be authorized by Congress.
Trump touches on Iran and the United Nations
The board was initiated as part of Trump's 20-point plan to end the
conflict in Gaza. But since the October ceasefire, Trump's vision for
the board has morphed and he wants it to have an even more ambitious
remit — one that will not only complete the Herculean task of bringing
lasting peace between Israel and Hamas but also help resolve conflicts
around the globe.
But the Gaza ceasefire deal remains fragile, and Trump's expanded vision
for the board has triggered fears the U.S. president is looking to
create a rival to the United Nations.
Trump, pushing back against the criticism, said the creation of his
board would help make the U.N. viable in the future.
“Someday I won’t be here. The United Nations will be,” Trump said. “I
think it is going to be much stronger, and the Board of Peace is going
to almost be looking over the United Nations and making sure it runs
properly.”
Even as Trump spoke of the gathering as a triumph that would help bring
a more persistent peace to the Middle East, he sent new warnings to
Iran.
Tensions are high between the United States and Iran as Trump has
ordered one of the largest U.S. military buildups in the region in
decades.
One aircraft carrier group is already in the region and another is on
the way. Trump has warned Tehran it will face American military action
if it does not denuclearize, give up ballistic missiles and halt funding
to extremist proxy groups, such as Hezbollah and Hamas.
“We have to make a meaningful deal. Otherwise bad things happen,” Trump
said.
Which countries pledged troops and funding
Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania made pledges to send
troops for a Gaza stabilization force, while Egypt and Jordan committed
to train police.
Troops will initially be deployed to Rafah, a largely destroyed and
mostly depopulated city under full Israeli control, where the U.S.
administration hopes to first focus reconstruction efforts.
The countries making pledges to fund reconstruction are Kazakhstan,
Azerbaijan, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi
Arabia, Uzbekistan and Kuwait, Trump said.
Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, leader of the newly created international
stabilization force, said plans call for 12,000 police and 20,000
soldiers for Gaza.
“With these first steps, we help bring the security that Gaza needs for
a future of prosperity and enduring peace,” Jeffers said.
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President Donald Trump speaks during a Board of Peace meeting at the
U.S. Institute of Peace, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP
Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Some US allies remain skeptical
Nearly 50 countries and the European Union sent officials to Thursday’s
meeting. Germany, Italy, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom are
among more than a dozen countries that have not joined the board but
took part as observers.
Most countries sent high-level officials, but a few leaders — including
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Argentine President Javier Milei
and Hungarian President Viktor Orbán — traveled to Washington.
“Almost everybody’s accepted, and the ones that haven’t, will be," Trump
offered. "And some are playing a little cute — it doesn’t work. You
can’t play cute with me.”
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin told reporters this
week that “at the international level, it should above all be the U.N.
that manages these crisis situations.” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël
Barrot said in a post on X that the European Commission should never
have attended the meeting as it had no mandate to do so.
More countries are “going through the process of getting on,” in some
cases, by getting approval from their legislatures, Trump told reporters
later Thursday.
“I would love to have China and Russia. They’ve been invited,” Trump
said. “You need both.”
Official after official used their speaking turns at the gathering to
heap praise on Trump for his ability to end conflicts. Pakistani Prime
Minister Shehbaz Sharif called him the “savior of South Asia,” while
others said that years of foreign policy efforts by his predecessor
failed to do what Trump has done in the past year.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Trump and others there
deserved thanks for their collective efforts on Gaza. But Fidan, who
said Turkey also was prepared to contribute troops to the stabilization
force, cautioned that the situation remains precarious.
“The humanitarian situation remains fragile and ceasefire violations
continue to occur,” Fidan said. “A prompt, coordinated and effective
response is therefore essential.”
Questions about disarming Hamas
Central to Thursday's discussions was assembling an international
stabilization force to keep security and ensure the disarming of the
militant Hamas group, a key demand of Israel and a cornerstone of the
ceasefire deal.
Hamas has provided little confidence that it is willing to move forward
on disarmament. The administration is “under no illusions on the
challenges regarding demilitarization” but has been encouraged by what
mediators have reported back, according to a U.S. official who was not
authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking at a dusty army base
in southern Israel, repeated his pledge that “there will be no
reconstruction” of Gaza before demilitarization. His foreign minister,
Gideon Saar, said during Thursday’s gathering that “there must be a
fundamental deradicalization process.”
Trump said Hamas has promised to disarm and would be met “very harshly”
if it fails to do so. But he gave few details on how the difficult task
would be carried out.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged that there is a “long ways
to go” in Gaza.
“There’s a lot of work that remains that will require the contribution
of every nation state represented here today," Rubio said.
___
Associated Press writers Josef Federman in Jerusalem, Didi Tang in
Washington, Farnoush Amiri at the United Nations and Nicole Winfield in
Rome contributed reporting.
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