Oh Pakistan! Islamabad’s wooing of Donald Trump continues — the latest being the Asian country being among the handful of nations that have joined the US president’s Board of Peace, which was unveiled on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum at Davos on Thursday (January 22).
On Thursday, Trump took to stage to unveil the Board of Peace in Davos surrounded by what can only be described as the American leader’s ‘superfans’. There was the ever-smiling Javier Milei of Argentina, Indonesia’s Prabowo Subianto, a former military general, and Viktor Orban, who over decades has turned Hungary into an illiberal state. Perhaps, the most glaring inclusion was that of Belarus’ Alexander Lukashenko, who is popularly known as “Europe’s last dictator’.
Joining them and Trump on stage at the event was Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif as well.
However, Pakistan’s decision to join this bloc has sparked sharp criticism from within the country, with leaders and activists warning that Islamabad may have misread the political cost of trying to align itself closely with Washington.
Pakistan enlists for Trump’s Board of Peace
On Thursday, Pakistan’s Shehbaz Sharif was on stage with US President Donald Trump as the latter unveiled his ambitious
Board of Peace at Davos. Endorsed by the United Nations Security Council last November, 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.
Since its charter has been released, many have speculated that the board is an attempt by Donald Trump to replace the United Nations. Moreover, questions have been raised about the agenda of the grouping as well as the
$1 billion price tag attached to gain permanent membership as well as the leadership of it — Trump will remain the chairman of the Board even after his presidential tenure ends.
But despite these concerns, on Thursday,
many nations, including Pakistan signed the charter of the Board. At the event, Trump said they were “in most cases very popular leaders, some cases not so popular”.
“That’s the way it goes in life,” he added, “Every one of them are friends of mine. I like every single one of them. Just about every country wants to be a part of it. We sent out the letters a couple of days ago and countries that are here just happened to be in Davos.”
According to the Foreign Office, Pakistan is hopeful that with the creation of this framework, “concrete steps will be taken towards the implementation of a permanent ceasefire, further scaling up of humanitarian aid for the Palestinians, as well as reconstruction of Gaza”.
The backlash begins against Sharif
However, not everyone is happy about Sharif’s decision to join Trump’s Board of Peace. It has triggered a firestorm, with many politicians as well as academics labelling Sharif’s move as non-transparent and “morally indefensible”.
Senate opposition leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas denounced Pakistan’s decision in a post on X, calling it “morally incorrect and indefensible, both on principle and on policy”. “The initiative was problematic from the outset. Conceived as an externally managed arrangement for post-war Gaza, it effectively removes the right of governance from the Palestinian people themselves. By placing reconstruction, security and political oversight in the hands of outside actors, the project carries the unmistakable imprint of a neo-colonial enterprise. Such frameworks rarely end at administration,” he said.
“Trump’s initiative will, over time, erode the very right to self-determination it claims to safeguard,” he wrote, adding, “What makes Pakistan’s participation more troubling is that an initiative initially sold as a limited mechanism for rebuilding after the genocide in Gaza is now being openly expanded. Statements by its principal sponsor and the contents of its draft charter suggest ambitions well beyond Palestine, with little regard for the United Nations. The absence of clear UN oversight and the board’s widening mandate point towards an attempt to supplant, or at the very least marginalise, the existing multilateral system.”
He further added, “Foreign policy decisions driven by short-term calculation often produce lasting consequences. By associating itself with a project that undermines both Palestinian agency and the UN system, Pakistan risks diluting its moral standing and strategic coherence. It is a decision Pakistan will regret,” he said.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the party led by former PM Imran Khan, also denounced the move, demanding that Sharif withdraw the country’s participation from the Board of Peace. “Decisions of such international significance must always be undertaken with full transparency and inclusive consultation with all major political stakeholders,” said the PTI in a statement, adding that it “calls upon the Government of Pakistan to withdraw any formal participation in the ‘Board of Peace’ until a complete consultative process has been conducted.”
The Imran Khan-led party even wants a national referendum on the decision.
Another political leader, Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar noted that the decision to join the board without any public debate or input from Parliament “smacks of the disregard this regime has of the Pakistani nation”.
He also asked “What the h*** are we binding ourselves to?”
Pakistan’s decision to join “Board of peace” without any public debate or input by the parliament smacks of the disregard this regime has of the Pakistani nation. The decision is wrong on following counts ;
1) The so called “board of peace” is a colonial enterprise to not only…
— Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar (@mustafa_nawazk) January 21, 2026
But it’s not just opposition figures who have criticised Sharif on his decision to enlist for Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’. Former ambassador to the US, UK and UN, Maleeha Lodhi, termed Pakistan’s participation an “unwise decision.” Writing on X, she said, “An unwise decision for many reasons. The government has overlooked the fact that Trump wants states to join the board to secure international support and legitimacy for what are and will be unilateral actions by him. The board’s remit is v broad and beyond Gaza, another reason not to join.”
Pakistan has signed up to an ‘organisation’ ( Board of Peace) which Trump projects as an alternative to the UN. And which is tied to Trump’s person and cannot last beyond his term in office. Is pleasing Trump more important than adhering to principles ?
— Maleeha Lodhi (@LodhiMaleeha) January 22, 2026
Even author and journalist Zahid Hussain slammed the Sharif administration for joining the group. Speaking to Dawn, Hussain said, “Pakistan has done it in a hurry. They should have waited. It would give them ample time to see what other countries are doing.”
“It raises questions about Pakistan’s foreign policy: do we just want to follow Trump’s diktat? We seem to only want to be in Trump’s good books,” he explained. “Trump’s imperialism has changed the power structure.”
Author and activist Fatima Bhutto also told The Dawn, “So Pakistan will be sitting with Israel on this “board of piece” – very perpetrators of the Palestinian Holocaust? What a disgrace.”
Pakistan’s continuous wooing of Trump
Pakistan’s decision of joining the Board of Peace, notwithstanding the criticism and the
hefty price tag, is part of Shehbaz Sharif’s administration’s continued wooing of US President Donald Trump. In fact, since
Operation Sindoor last May, Islamabad has doubled down its efforts to strengthen its ties with the Trump administration, spending millions of dollars in lobbying efforts and also endorsing the
US president for the Nobel Peace Prize — he missed out on it.
Last October, Sharif even endorsed Trump’s claim that he mediated peace between India and Pakistan, saying the American leader “prevented a possible nuclear conflict” between the two countries. Speaking at Egypt’s Sharm El-Sheikh to discuss Gaza’s post-war future, Sharif said: “Today is one of the greatest days in contemporary history because peace has been achieved after untiring efforts led by President Trump, who is genuinely a man of peace.”
🚨 SHEHBAZ SHARIF : Today again I am nominating Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Price 😀
Watch Georgia Meloni’s reaction 😭😂 pic.twitter.com/QtaqTTOhxg
— News Algebra (@NewsAlgebraIND) October 13, 2025
“Pakistan has nominated President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for his extraordinary efforts to first stop the war between India and Pakistan and then achieve a ceasefire, along with his very wonderful team,” he added.
Besides this, Sharif and his Field Marshal Asim Munir, who was watching the event at Davos from the crowds, have also signed deals with Trump on Islamabad supplying
critical minerals and rare earth elements to the US, and also discussing joint ventures in
cryptocurrency.
And it seems that Pakistan’s approach seems to be working with Trump. The US president levied only a 19 per cent tariff on the country, the lowest for any South Asian nation.
The question is will this wooing of Trump continue and how far will it go.
With inputs from agencies
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