UNITED NATIONS (VINnews) — U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said Friday he met with Board of Peace High Representative Nickolay Mladenov and described the diplomat as a key partner in efforts to secure Gaza’s future, strip Hamas of its weapons and restore basic civilian governance.

“Outstanding to meet with Board of Peace High Representative @nmladenov,” Waltz wrote on X, posting a photograph of the two men standing together at the U.S. Mission. “He is a key partner in the work to secure Gaza’s future, rid Hamas of its weapons, restore basic governance under a Committee of Palestinian technocrats, and build a real foundation for stability in the Middle East.”

Mladenov, a former Bulgarian foreign minister and onetime U.N. special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, was appointed to lead day-to-day work of the Board of Peace, the transitional body created under President Donald Trump’s Gaza plan and later endorsed by the U.N. Security Council.

The plan calls for Hamas to disarm, for an international stabilization force to help secure the territory, and for a committee of Palestinian technocrats — formally known as the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza — to take over civilian administration in place of the terrorist group.

Waltz’s remarks come days after Mladenov briefed the Security Council on implementation of the U.S.-backed framework, warning that a collapse of the ceasefire would be “a point of no return” and saying progress depends on verified demilitarization, not calendar deadlines.

Israel has said it will not withdraw from current lines in Gaza until Hamas surrenders its arsenal. Hamas has said it accepted elements of a disarmament roadmap, but Israeli and U.S. officials have said the group remains armed and has not given up governing authority.

Waltz, a former congressman and combat-decorated Army Green Beret who took up the U.N. post in September 2025, has repeatedly told the council that Hamas’s complete and irreversible demilitarization is the core of the Trump plan and is not subject to negotiation.