Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Saturday that he will be going to Washington "in two weeks" to attend the first meeting of US President Donald Trump's "Board of Peace".
Although originally intended to oversee Gaza's rebuilding, the board's charter does not seem to limit its role to the Palestinian territory and appears to want to rival the United Nations.
One of the US leader's closest allies in the European Union, the nationalist Orban attended the launch of the initiative last month in the Swiss ski resort of Davos.
"Two weeks from now we will meet again in Washington, because the Board of Peace, the peace body, will have an inaugural meeting," he told a campaign event in the western town of Szombathely.
Permanent members must pay $1 billion to join, leading to criticism that the board could become a "pay to play" version of the UN Security Council.
Hungary is the only EU country that showed interest in joining Trump’s Board of Peace. But its leader, Victor Orban -- currently the longest-serving national leader in the EU -- faces an unprecedented challenge at a general election slated for April 12.
Independent polls show the opposition led by Peter Magyar, an ex-government-insider-turned-critic, is ahead with a stagnating economy and growing discontent with public services, among key issues.
Doubts
Trump unveiled the new Board of Peace at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos in January, joined on stage by leaders and officials from 19 countries to sign its founding charter.
But key US allies including France and Britain have expressed doubts.
London expressed concerns about the inclusion of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose forces are fighting in Ukraine after invading in 2022.
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France said the charter as it currently stood was "incompatible" with its international commitments, especially its UN membership.
"We have serious doubts about a number of elements in the charter of the Board of Peace related to its scope, its governance and its compatibility with the UN Charter," the European Council president said after an EU leaders' summit in Brussels.
"We are ready to work together with the US on the implementation of the comprehensive Peace Plan for Gaza, with a Board of Peace carrying out its mission as a transitional administration".
(With newswires)
