UN Secretary-General António Guterres welcomed the aim of Donald Trump's Board of Peace to fund and deliver the basics of a Gaza reconstruction plan to rebuild Palestinian homes and infrastructure, Politico reported on Saturday.
“There is an objective there that was defined, approved by the Security Council, and we are cooperating actively with structures created by the Board of Peace,” Guterres told the news outlet in an interview.
Guterres saw no need for the board - a new international body personally headed by Trump, which has been tasked with overseeing post-war Gaza - beyond Gaza's reconstruction.
“This is not the effective way to address the dramatic problems that we have now. We need to be clear about international law to be clear about the values of the United Nations Charter. That is essential in any peace initiative,” he told Politico.
Addressing the war in Iran, Guterres called for an end to Tehran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz, suggesting the UN could help protect the waterway and be part of a plan to de-escalate attacks.
He said he had not spoken with Trump since the start of the war, although he has spoken to others in the administration.
Board of Peace meets representatives of Hamas in Cairo
Last week, envoys from Trump's Board of Peace met representatives of Hamas in Cairo in an effort to safeguard the Gaza ceasefire.
The meeting was the first publicly reported since the start of the Iran war between the Palestinian terrorist group and the board.
Following the meeting, Israel announced that it would reopen the sole crossing for pedestrians between Gaza and Egypt, shut since the Iran bombing campaign began. One source familiar with the issue said he believed the Israeli announcement was a direct result of the meeting between Hamas and the board.
Guterres proposes altering UN Security Council to regain effectiveness
Confronted with disparaging statements Trump made earlier this year about the UN's effectiveness and purpose, Guterres admitted that the UN had no leverage to compel members to obey international law, especially when compared to the 'big powers'.
Guterres also admitted to the ineffectiveness of the UN Security Council, claiming that it no longer represented the world. He specifically mentioned the veto ability possessed by any of the council's permanent members - France, China, Russia, the UK, and the US - as leading to individual members furthering their interests.
Guterres has proposed altering the council's membership structure to "regain legitimacy" and "give voice to the whole world," as well as limiting the use of vetoes.
On the situation in Gaza, the secretary-general has repeatedly blamed Israel for denying the UN sufficient access in order to provide humanitarian aid.
"For a long time, Israel was saying that humanitarian aid was not distributed because the UN was not able to do so. Of course, whenever Israel would not allow us to move into Gaza, we couldn't move into Gaza. And then there was a ceasefire, and a massive flow of humanitarian aid," he has said.
Guterres has also claimed that hundreds of Palestinians were killed due to Israel backing an external contractor, the Gaza Humanitarian Organization, instead of the UN.
Tzvi Jasper and Tobias Siegal contributed to this report.