preCharge News POLITICS — U.S. President Donald Trump was surrounded by world leaders as he declared the war in Gaza was “really coming to an end” at a signing ceremony for his “Board of Peace” for the territory.

But many countries are not represented, and Trump singled out Spain for criticism on its defense spending from the podium, saying “They want a free ride.”

The United Arab Emirates, Hungary and Pakistan were represented at the ceremony at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday. The board is intended to oversee the reconstruction of Gaza.

World Leaders Attending the Board of Peace Signing

This is who is on the board and participated in the signing event.

Attending Heads of State and Senior Officials

• Isa bin Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, minister of the prime minister’s court, Bahrain
• Nasser Bourita, minister of foreign affairs, Morocco
• Javier Milei, president, Argentina
• Nikol Pashinyan, prime minister, Armenia
• Ilham Aliyev, President, Azerbaijan
• Rosen Zhelyazkov, prime minister, Bulgaria
• Viktor Orban, prime minister, Hungary
• Prabowo Subianto, president, Indonesia
• Ayman Al Safadi, minister of foreign affairs, Jordan
• Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, president, Kazakhstan
• Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, president, Kosovo
• Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, prime minister, Pakistan
• Santiago Peña, president, Paraguay
• Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, president, Qatar
• Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, minister of foreign affairs, Saudi Arabia
• Hakan Fidan, minister of foreign affairs, Turkey
• Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, special envoy to the U.S. for the UAE
• Shavkat Mirziyoyev, president, Uzbekistan
• Gombojavyn Zandanshatar, prime minister, Mongolia

Major Absences and Rejected Invitations

A long list of countries, including Canada, France, Germany, Italy and other European nations, were absent from the signing, and some have specifically rejected the invitation.

UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC on Thursday that it “won’t be one of the signatories today,” citing concerns over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invitation to join.

Spain did not send a representative to the signing, with an invitation for Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to join “under review,” according to Spanish media.

Russia’s Invitation and European Pushback

Putin received an invitation to join Trump’s peace group on Monday and was “studying all the details of this proposal,” Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, but no representative was present at the signing event on Thursday.

In an interview on Wednesday, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said the U.S. administration would meet Putin about joining the Board of Peace.

France reportedly turned the invitation down to join the board, as did Germany, per a Spiegel report citing a Foreign Ministry document.

Belgium has not signed up either, its foreign minister, Maxime Prevot, said in a statement posted on X Thursday.

Sweden, Slovenia and Norway also turned the invitation down, according to local news reports.

Expanded Role of the Board of Peace

The Board of Peace was endorsed by the United Nations Security Council in November last year. It was originally established to oversee the rebuilding of Gaza, but now has a far broader mandate, including promoting global stability and conflict resolution around the world.

Israel was not represented at the signing event, but its Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will join, according to reports.

Palestinian Authority Reaction

When asked about the board of peace on Wednesday, Mohammed Mustafa, the Prime Minister of the Palestinian National Authority, said:

“We want to work with the Board of Peace, with the executive board and with the committee, to ensure that they do their part of things.”

Founding Executive Board Members

Last week the White House confirmed a founding “Executive Board,” to “operationalize the Board of Peace’s vision.”

Executive Board Appointees

• Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State
• Steve Witkoff, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East
• Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law
• Sir Tony Blair, former U.K. prime minister
• Marc Rowan, CEO, Apollo
• Ajay Banga, World Bank president
• Robert Gabriel, security advisor

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Associated Press, CNBC News, Fox News, and preCharge News contributed to this report.