The inaugural meeting of Donald Trump’s board of peace in Washington on February 19 caps a busy week for US diplomacy – though, not necessarily for the country’s professional diplomats. These people have been largely sidelined in the close-knit circle of the US president’s personal envoys, his former real-estate business partner Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner.
Earlier in the week, Witkoff and Kushner attended two separate sets of negotiations in the Swiss city of Geneva. They first sat down for indirect talks with Iran before then leading negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. They then dashed back to Washington to attend the board of peace meeting.
At best, Witkoff and Kushner have a mixed track record of diplomatic success. Kushner was a key mediator in the Abraham accords during Trump’s first term in office. Designed to normalise relations between Israel and other states across the Middle East, the accords have failed to create sustainable momentum for regional peace and stability.
