- Invitation extended by US President Donald Trump in January.
- A final decision on the PM’s participation will be made in the coming days.
- The initiative seeks reconstruction, stability, lasting UN-backed solution in Gaza.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to attend the first leadership meeting of the US-initiated Gaza ‘Peace Council’ in Washington on February 19, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The development follows an invitation by US President Donald Trump to Pakistan to join the Board of Peace on Gaza, which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOF) confirmed on 18 January 2026.
Sources, however, said a final decision on Prime Minister Shehbaz’s participation in the meeting would be taken in the coming days.
Last month, FO spokesman Tahir Andrabi said Pakistan will continue to engage in international efforts aimed at peace and security in Gaza.
“Pakistan will remain committed to international efforts for peace and security in Gaza, leading to a lasting solution to the Palestine issue in accordance with UN resolutions,” he said.
Pakistan has reiterated in international forums that it is prepared to play a “constructive role” in the US peace plan for Palestine.
In December 2026, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said that Pakistan’s civilian and military leadership was fully committed not to send troops to Gaza to disarm Hamas.
The planned meeting was first reported by Axioswho said the assembly would also serve as a fundraising conference for the reconstruction of Gaza.
“We can confirm that the meeting of the Board of Peace is scheduled for February 19,” the official said in a statement to Reuters. Additional questions were referred to the White House, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The meeting would be held at the US Institute of Peace in Washington, DC, Axios reported.
At least one world leader has confirmed his participation. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, one of Trump’s closest allies in the European Union, said at a campaign event Saturday in the western city of Szombathely that he would go to Washington in two weeks to attend the Peace Council meeting.
In late January, Trump launched the board, which he will chair and which he says will aim to resolve global conflicts, leading some experts to worry that such a board could undermine the United Nations.
Ceasefire violations in Gaza
Governments around the world have responded cautiously to Trump’s invitation to join the initiative. While some of Washington’s Middle Eastern allies have joined in, many of its traditional Western allies have so far stayed away. Permanent membership on the board costs DKK 1 billion.
A UN Security Council resolution passed in mid-November authorized the board and countries working with it to establish an international stabilization force in Gaza, where a fragile ceasefire began in October under a Trump plan signed by Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Under Trump’s Gaza plan, unveiled late last year, the board was supposed to oversee Gaza’s interim governance. Trump then said it would be expanded to address global conflicts.
A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the planned Peace Council meeting.
Many rights experts say Trump, who oversees a board to oversee the affairs of a foreign territory, resembled a colonial structure and have criticized the board for not including a Palestinian.
The fragile cease-fire in Gaza has been repeatedly violated, with over 550 Palestinians and four Israeli soldiers reported killed since the cease-fire began in October.
