Cambodia Okays with US President Trump for Board of Peace Council’s Founding Member State
Chhay Sophal
Phnom Penh (27 January 2026): Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet has confirmed that his government agreed with US President Donald Trump’s invitation to participate as a Founding Member State and become a party to the Charter of the Board of Peace Council.
During a meeting with U.S. Indo-Pacific Command Commander Rear Admiral Samuel Paparo in Phnom Penh on Monday, Hun Manet informed Admiral that Cambodia has received President Donald Trump’s letter of invitation and “Cambodia will participate in the Peace Council, which demonstrates Cambodia’s goodwill and high commitment to global peace”.
On January 16, President Trump sent a letter of invitation to Hun Manet directly to invite Cambodia saying that “As Chairman of the Board, I formally invite the Kingdom of Cambodia to join as a Founding Member State, and become a party to the Charter of The Board of Peace, as represented by you. This Board will be one of a kind, there has never been anything like it! Each Member State may designate an authorized representative to attend and participate in meetings on its behalf….”.
Hun Manet on Tuesday also wrote on his Facebook page reaffirming that the participation is to demonstrate “Cambodia’s willingness to support and contribute to the promotion of global peacekeeping. Goodwill, love of peace, support and contribution to building and maintaining peace are principles that Cambodia has always adhered to, especially through the dispatch of peacekeeping forces under the United Nations umbrella to carry out missions in several countries affected by war”.
Based on the financial obligations in the participation, Hun Manet clarifies that “participating as a founding member of the Board of Peace for a three-year term does not require payment of funds. The payment of 1 billion US dollars is for long-term (permanent) membership only”.
At least 35 countries out of the 62 invited have publicly accepted President Trump’s Board of Peace initiative aiming to resolve global conflicts.
