The White House has accused the Nobel Committee of "putting politics over peace" after its most coveted award, the Nobel Peace Prize, was awarded this year to Venezuelan activist María Corina Machado, rather than US President Donald Trump.
The Nobel Committee announced Friday that Machado was honored for her “unwavering work in defense of the democratic rights of the Venezuelan people.” But in Washington, the reaction was immediate.
“The Nobel Committee has once again shown that it chooses politics over peace,” White House communications director Steven Cheung said after the decision was announced.
“President Trump will continue to make peace deals, stop wars, and save lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be another like him who moves mountains with the force of his will,” Cheung added on the X platform.
Trump, who has often spoken openly about his desire to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, has taken credit for brokering a ceasefire in Gaza, announced just two days before the Nobel Prize was awarded. He has also claimed to have “ended dozens of global conflicts” during the second nine months of his presidency and during his first term.
After announcing the ceasefire, Trump wrote on social media:
"Blessed be the peacemakers."
While the White House called him "the president of peace."
His supporters, including several foreign leaders such as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have publicly called for Trump to receive the prestigious prize.
However, under Nobel rules, nominations close on January 31 of each year — just days after Trump takes office — which rules out him being in the running this year.
Meanwhile, the Nobel Committee conducts its final deliberations from February to September to determine the eventual winner.
While the Israel-Hamas ceasefire is a significant development, it remains in its early stages of implementation.
Meanwhile, Russia’s war in Ukraine continues, despite Trump’s calls for Zelensky and Putin to “close the wound.”
Since the start of his second term, Trump has pursued a tough "America First" policy that has significantly changed the US's role on the international stage.
Just weeks after taking office, his advisor Elon Musk led the dismantling of USAID, the agency that provided humanitarian aid around the world.
According to the Nobel Committee's official website, the Peace Prize is awarded to leaders who "promote disarmament, democracy, human rights, and the building of a more just and peaceful world."
Meanwhile, Trump's mass deportation policies have sparked protests in the US and criticism from humanitarian organizations, while the use of National Guard troops to patrol cities has been condemned by federal courts as an abuse of military authority.
In American history, four presidents have won the Nobel Peace Prize:
Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama.
Only Obama won it while in office./BBC
