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President of the United Stated of America, Donald Trump has withdrawn an invitation for Canada to join his newly launched Board of Peace initiative.
This is coming hours after formally unveiling the body and days after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney delivered a sharply worded speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney praised the strengths of the middle powers in his special address at Davos 2026. Image: World Economic Forum / Ciaran McCrickard
The reversal followed Carney’s Davos address, in which he criticized powerful countries for turning economic integration into a tool of coercion.
In that speech, Carney warned against “powerful nations using economic integration as weapons and tariffs as leverage,” and urged countries to accept what he described as “the end of a rules-based global order.”
Trump announced the withdrawal in a public message aimed directly at the Canadian leader.
“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 post on Truth Social dated January 23, 2026, addressed to Carney.
The move marked an abrupt change of course.
Just last week, Carney’s office confirmed that the Canadian prime minister had been invited to serve on the board and that he planned to accept.
In Davos, Carney’s remarks drew a rare standing ovation, according to attendees.
He said Canada, which recently signed a trade deal with China, could demonstrate how “middle powers” might work together to avoid being “victimized by American hegemony.”
Trump responded forcefully to those comments while also speaking in Davos.
He said Canada “lives because of the United States” and argued that Carney should show appreciation for Washington’s past support.
“Remember that, Mark, the next time you make your statements,” Trump added, addressing Carney directly.
The withdrawal of Canada’s invitation came just hours after Trump officially launched the Board of Peace, an initiative he initially described as a mechanism to help cement a ceasefire in Gaza.
According to Trump, permanent members of the board are required to contribute financially.
“Permanent members must help fund the board with a payment of $1 billion each,” he said.
Speaking in Switzerland on Thursday, Trump outlined the scope of the body’s ambitions.
“Once this board is completely formed, we can do pretty much whatever we want to do,” he said, adding, “And we’ll do it in conjunction with the United Nations.”
The board’s establishment was endorsed by a United Nations Security Council resolution as part of Trump’s Gaza peace plan.
U.N. spokesperson Rolando Gomez said on Thursday that United Nations engagement with the board would be limited to that context.
Current member nations include Argentina, Bahrain, Morocco, Pakistan and Turkey. Other U.S. allies — including Britain, France and Italy — have indicated they will not join the initiative for now.
Neither Carney’s office nor the White House immediately responded to requests for comment on Thursday evening, Reuters reported on Friday.
