UN Security Council Backs Trump’s Bid For Gaza Stabilization Force

The United Nations Security Council approved a resolution backing President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan, in a move the US said would help bolster the fragile truce between Israel and Hamas. 

The top decision-making body at the United Nations saw 13 votes Monday in support of the US-led proposal, with Russia and China abstaining. The action is largely symbolic, since Trump’s 20-point plan has been in motion since Israel and Hamas agreed to a broad peace deal in October.

US officials had nonetheless pushed for the Security Council’s stamp of approval for the plan, arguing the support would help ensure diplomatic momentum. The resolution would also help rally the necessary international troops to help monitor the ceasefire in Gaza, officials argued.

“Today’s resolution represents another significant step towards a stable Gaza that will be able to prosper and an environment that will allow Israel to live in security,” US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz said at the Security Council. 

“No” votes from China and Russia would have killed the proposal given the veto power they wield as permanent members of the council. The fact that they abstained signaled that they’re not going to stand in the way, at least publicly, of the US-led plan.

Waltz said troops from some Muslim-majority nations including Indonesia and Azerbaijan will help make up an International Stabilization Force. The troops will work closely with Egypt and Israel to help keep order while the Israel Defense Forces withdraw from the Gaza Strip and the so-called Board of Peace outlined in Trump’s proposal helps set up a transitional government. 

These would remain authorized until Dec. 31, 2027, and can be renewed by the Security Council if necessary.

“It is essential now to translate the diplomatic momentum into concrete and urgently needed steps on the ground,” UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said in a statement. “The United Nations is committed to implementing the roles entrusted to it in the resolution, scaling up humanitarian assistance to meet the needs of civilians in Gaza and supporting all efforts to move the parties toward the next phase of the ceasefire.”

The UN document also calls on the Board of Peace, which is led by Trump, to report on its progress to the Security Council every six months.

“Congratulations to the World on the incredible Vote of the United Nations Security Council, just moments ago, acknowledging and endorsing the BOARD OF PEACE, which will be chaired by me, and include the most powerful and respected Leaders throughout the World,” Trump wrote on Truth Social after the vote. “This will go down as one of the biggest approvals in the History of the United Nations.”

Even though the resolution has some support from outside the council — including from the Palestinian Authority and other member states — some countries worry that the plan doesn’t pave the way for a two-state solution.

The resolution says the plan will facilitate “a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood” and that the US “will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous coexistence.”

Last week, Russia pushed its own draft resolution that prioritized Palestinian statehood. The US delegation warned that attempts to “sow discord” would have “grave, tangible, and entirely avoidable consequences for Palestinians in Gaza.”