Trump withdraws invitation for Canada to join his global ‘board of peace’

Donald Trump withdrew on Thursday an invitation for Canada to join his “board of peace” initiative aimed at resolving global conflicts.“Please let this Letter serve to represent that the Board of Peace is withdrawing its invitation to you regarding Canada’s joining, what will be, the most prestigious Board of Leaders ever assembled, at any time,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post directed at the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney.Trump launched his “board of peace” initiative at the World Economic Forum in Davos, claiming it would be “one of the most consequential bodies ever created in the history of the world”. The board will be chaired by Trump.While the leaders of many liberal democracies declined to sign on to Trump’s new international organization, Carney had, before Davos, accepted in principle, though he said on Sunday his officials had not yet gone through “all the details of the structure, how it’s going to work, what the financing is for, etcetera”.“Canada wants money to have maximum impact,” Carney told reporters.Canada’s finance minister, François-Philippe Champagne, then said on Tuesday that the Canadians did not plan to pay the $1bn countries were asked to hand over to Trump for a permanent seat on the board that was originally described as a temporary body to oversee the governance and reconstruction of Gaza.In a frank address to world leaders at Davos on Tuesday, Carney described what he called “a rupture” in the previous “rules-based” world order overseen by the United States caused by Trump’s aggressive behavior.When he arrived in Davos, Trump made it clear that he had heard or at least heard of Carney’s viral speech.“Canada lives because of the United States,” Trump said in his own address on Wednesday. “Remember that, Mark, the next time you make your statements.”“Canada doesn’t live because of the United States,” Carney responded Thursday. “Canada thrives because we are Canadian.”