- Invitation launched by US President Donald Trump in January.
- The final decision on the Prime Minister’s participation will be made in the coming days.
- The initiative aims for reconstruction, stability and a lasting UN-backed solution in Gaza.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to attend the first meeting of leaders 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 Gaza Peace Council, which the Foreign Office (FO) confirmed on January 18, 2026.
Sources, however, said a final decision on PM Shehbaz’s participation in the meeting would be taken in the coming days.
Last month, FO spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said Pakistan would continue to participate in international efforts aimed at peace and security in Gaza.
“Pakistan will remain committed to international efforts towards peace and security in Gaza, leading to a lasting solution to the Palestinian question in accordance with United Nations resolutions,” he said.
Pakistan has reiterated at international forums its desire 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 leaders were in full agreement not to send troops to Gaza to disarm Hamas.
The planned meeting was first reported by Axioswho said the gathering would also serve as a fundraising conference for the reconstruction of Gaza.
“We can confirm that the Peace Council meeting is scheduled for February 19,” the official said in a statement to Reuters. Further questions were referred to the White House, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The meeting would be held at the United States 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 Saturday at a campaign event in the western town of Szombathely that he would travel to Washington in two weeks to attend the Peace Council meeting.
In late January, Trump launched the board he will chair that 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 reacted cautiously to Trump’s invitation to join the initiative. Although some of Washington’s allies in the Middle East have joined, many of its traditional Western allies have so far stayed away. Permanent board membership costs $1 billion.
A U.N. Security Council resolution adopted in mid-November authorized the council and countries working with it to establish an international stabilization force in Gaza, where a fragile ceasefire began in October under a Trump plan that Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas endorsed.
Under Trump’s plan for Gaza, revealed late last year, the council was supposed to oversee the temporary governance of Gaza. Trump later said it would be expanded to address global conflicts.
A spokesperson for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the planned Peace Council meeting.
Many human rights experts say Trump overseeing a council charged with overseeing the affairs of a foreign territory resembled a colonial structure and have criticized the council for not including a Palestinian.
The fragile ceasefire in Gaza has been repeatedly violated, with more than 550 Palestinians and four Israeli soldiers killed since the truce began in October.
