The Trump administration dissolved the US Institute of Peace and seized its headquarters through DOGE and FBI interventions. The facility was renamed the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, which now houses a Board of Peace struggling to manage a Gaza ceasefire.
The March 14 purge of Biden-appointed directors
The transition began with a February 19 executive order signed by Donald Trump calling for the elimination of the US Institute of Peace (USIP). According to the report, the situation escalated on March 14,when Donald Trump fired all Biden-appointed members of the USIP Board of Directors. Only three ex-officio members—Marco Rubio, Pete Hegseth, and Peter Garvin—remained on the board to oversee the transition.
The seizure of the USIP headquarters involved a coordinated effort between the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and the FBI. As the report says, FBI agents allegedly threatened the USIP's security vendor with the loss of all government contracts to gain physical entry. After a series of legal disputes and a failed attempt by the USIP lawyer to block entry, armed Metropolitan Police officers eventually escorted staff out and handed the facility over to DOGE.
From a 40-year database to cockroaches and drugs
The dissolution of the US Institute of Peace represents a sharp break from four decades of American conflict resolution strategy. For 40 years, the USIP served as a hub for diplomacy, mediation, and research, building an applied science of peacebuilding. This institutional memory was effectively erased when the organization's extensive database was reportedly destroyed during the takeover by the Trump administration.
The physical state of the headquarters mirrored the institutional collapse. Following the physical occupation by DOGE, the facility was reportedly left in disarray, with reports of thousands of dollars in damage and the presence of drugs and cockroaches. This transition from a professional research institute to the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace marks a shift toward a more centralized, less academic approach to international relations.
The October 9 agreement brokered by Kushner and Witkoff
In place of the original institute, the Trump administration established the Board of Peace to manage active conflicts. the board's primary focus has been a Gaza ceasefire plan drawn up by Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff.. This agreement, which included input from various Arab and Muslim nations,was signed on October 9, 2025, and went into effect the following day.
Despite the formal agreement, the Board of Peace has struggled to maintain stability. The first phase of the plan required the withdrawal of Israeli troops to specific deployment lines, but the report notes that this has not held, with ceasefire violations occurring almost daily. While the plan successfully facilitated the return of living hostages and the remains of the deceased to Israel, as well as the release of Palestinian prisoners, the broader goal of lasting peace remains elusive.
Who authorized the destruction of the USIP database?
Several critical details regarding the transition remain unverified or missing from the account. Most notably,while the report states the USIP database was "reportedly" destroyed, it does not name the specific individual or agency that ordered the deletion of 40 years of institutional knowledge. It remains unclear if this was a deliberate policy decision or a byproduct of the chaotic DOGE takeover.
Additionally, the report provides limited detail on the specific "input" provided by Arab and Muslim countries during the Kushner-Witkoff negotiations. There is no mention of whether these nations formally endorsed the Board of Peace as a legitimate successor to the US Institute of Peace, or if they view the new entity as a purely political instrument of the Trump administration.
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