- January 19, 2026
- 12:32 pm
- Middle East
US President Donald Trump has sent an invitation to Vladimir Putin to join the newly created “Peace Council” — a new international structure that, according to the White House’s plan, should address conflict resolution, starting with the Gaza Strip. The Russian side confirmed receipt of the invitation and stated that it is “studying the details,” awaiting contacts with the American administration to clarify the format.
The very fact of the invitation is causing a stir right from the start. It is not just about a controversial diplomatic initiative, but an attempt to include in a potential “peacekeeping” body the leader of a state that is conducting a full-scale aggressive war against Ukraine and is responsible for massive destruction and civilian casualties.
What Trump’s “Peace Council” Represents
According to Trump, the Council should become a flexible international mechanism, not bound by the bureaucratic constraints of the UN. Its members will be appointed for a term of up to three years with the possibility of extension. However, there is an exception: states that contribute more than one billion dollars in the first year can expect a special status and actual securing of their participation.
Initially, the Council should focus on Gaza and the post-war governance architecture of the territory. However, it became clear at the formation stage that the project is conceived more broadly — as an alternative platform for global political bargaining.
It is in this context that Putin’s name appeared.
Russia and Putin: Why This Invitation Looks Toxic
Russia under Putin’s leadership is an aggressor state that has been waging war against Ukraine since 2022, destroying cities, energy infrastructure, and deliberately striking civilian targets.
This is not about a “controversial interpretation of the conflict,” but a documented reality:
Russian troops shelled residential areas, hospitals, schools, and life-support facilities.
Thousands of civilians were killed, tens of thousands were injured.
In the occupied territories, torture, illegal detentions, abductions, and pressure on the civilian population have been documented.
A separate episode that became an international symbol of crimes was the deportation of Ukrainian children — it was precisely on this point that an international arrest warrant was issued for Putin.
In fact, Putin’s Russia uses terror as a method of war: strikes on energy in winter, attacks on infrastructure, and constant intimidation of the population have become part of the military strategy.
Against this backdrop, inviting Putin to a structure called the “Peace Council” looks like a political paradox and raises questions even among those accustomed to Trump’s unconventional steps.
Why Trump Is Doing This
Trump’s logic is traditionally transactional. His approach to international politics is not based on moral categories but on the calculation of influence and deals.
The possible motives for the invitation are obvious:
an attempt to involve Russia in a format where Washington sets the rules of the game;
a demonstration that the US is ready to talk to any players if it provides leverage;
using Putin’s figure as a tool in a broader geopolitical combination — from the Middle East to energy markets.
However, this approach faces reality: Putin’s reputation as a partner is so undermined that his participation does not enhance trust in the project, but rather calls into question the very idea of “peacekeeping.”
Reaction and International Background
A number of world leaders have already received similar invitations. Turkey, Argentina, and Hungary have expressed their willingness to consider participation. This underscores that Trump seeks to gather the widest possible circle — from US allies to controversial and ambiguous players.
But the Russian case remains the most problematic. For many countries, including Putin in the “Peace Council” means the risk of legitimizing the aggressor and attempting to “normalize” the war against Ukraine without real accountability for the committed crimes.
What This Means in Practice
Inviting Putin does not make Russia a peacemaker and does not erase the facts of the war. It only emphasizes the new reality of world politics, where:
an aggressor can be invited to the negotiating table without a prior cessation of violence;
crimes against civilians do not automatically become a barrier to participation in new formats;
the decisive factor is increasingly not reputation, but the ability to be useful in a specific deal.
For Ukraine and its allies, this is a worrying signal. For Israel, it is a reason to closely monitor how the initiative will develop, whether it participates in blurring the lines between “dialogue” and the actual justification of terror.
Conclusion
Trump’s idea to create a “Peace Council” looks ambitious, but inviting Putin to this format highlights the main problem of the project: the desire for quick deals directly contradicts the reality of war and crimes that cannot be ignored without consequences.
As long as the Russian army destroys Ukrainian cities and kills civilians, Putin’s participation in any “peace” initiative remains not a step towards stability, but a symbol of how distorted global political logic has become.
NAnews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency — because in a world where aggressors are invited to peace councils, it is especially important to call things by their names.
