Trump unveils 'Board of Peace': India absent from stage; Pakistan's Shahbaz Sharif joins US President

NEW DELHI: As US President Donald Trump unveiled his “Board of Peace” at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, India was not present on the stage. New Delhi had received an invitation to join the initiative on Sunday, but has not officially accepted or rejected the offer. The signing ceremony, however, was attended by Pakistan's PM Shahbaz Sharif.Trump had invited India to join his “Board of Peace” initiative, according to a White House statement. The statement was shared on X by Washington’s ambassador to New Delhi, Sergio Gor. In the letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Trump wrote, “It is my great honour to invite you, as Prime Minister of the Republic of India, to join me in a critically historic and magnificent effort to solidify peace in the Middle East and, at the same time, to embark on a bold new approach to resolving global conflict!”The countries represented on the Board of Peace includes Bahrain, Morocco, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Hungary, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Pakistan, Paraguay, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the UAE, Uzbekistan and Mongolia.The number of participants was lower than what US officials had indicated earlier. A senior Trump administration official had said earlier in the week that around 35 countries were expected to attend. Western European nations stayed away, with some expressing concerns about the idea of a peace board that could include countries such as Russia, which is currently at war with one of their allies.Trump unveiled the “Board of Peace” at Davos, saying it was meant to help resolve international conflicts and that “everybody” wanted to be part of it. He also said he would continue to work with other international bodies, including the United Nations.