The European External Action Service (EEAS) is raising questions about the broad powers of US President Donald Trump within his newly created Peace Council, according to an internal document of the service, which Reuters has obtained, BTA reports.
Trump has encouraged world leaders to join his Peace Council, created to resolve conflicts around the world, but many Western leaders have remained reserved.
In a confidential analysis on January 19, shared with European Union member states, the EEAS expressed concern about the concentration of power in Trump's hands.
The Peace Council's charter "raises concerns about constitutional principles in the EU" and "the autonomy of the EU's legal order also "is an obstacle to the concentration of power in the hands of a single chairman," the analysis says.
The document also says that the newly established Peace Council "departs significantly" from the mandate given in November by the UN Security Council and focused solely on the conflict in Gaza.
The new Council, whose creation the US president officially announced yesterday, is chaired for life by Trump and will begin work by dealing with the conflict in Gaza and then expand its activities to deal with other conflicts. Membership in the Council is limited to three years, unless countries pay $ 1 billion to finance its activities and receive permanent membership.
"Once this Council is fully formed, we will be able to do almost anything we want. And we will do it together with the UN," Trump said, adding that the UN has great potential that has not been fully exploited.
After European leaders met last night to discuss transatlantic relations, European Council President Antonio Costa told reporters: "We have serious concerns about a number of elements in the Charter of the Peace Council, relating to its scope, governance and compatibility with the UN Charter".
Costa said the EU was "ready to work together with the US on the implementation of the comprehensive peace plan for Gaza, with the Peace Council fulfilling its mission as a transitional administration in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2803".
Several EU countries, including France and Spain, have already said they will not join the Council.
In its analysis, the EEAS said that "the provision under which "the choice of a Member State regarding the level of its participation requires approval by the President, constitutes an undue interference with the organisational autonomy of each Member".