“I think I’m going to receive a Nobel Prize for many things. If they gave it fairly, they wouldn’t. They gave it to [Barack] Obama, immediately after he came to the presidency and he had no idea why he won it. You know, it was the only thing I agreed with him. “
The statements are by Donald Trump and were given at a press conference in September 2019, more than a year after the US President was first nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize because of efforts to normalize relations with the United States. North Korea and its historic summit with leader Kim Jong-un.
Since then, his administration has negotiated a peace agreement with the Taliban in Afghanistan, allowing the US military to withdraw from the country (as it is doing with Iraq), and the White House was the scene of the signing of the historic Abraham Accords, that allow the normalization of relations between Israel and two Arab countries, United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. In addition, the US also helped Serbia and Kosovo to sign an economic agreement, although Belgrade fell short of the official recognition of the republic that declared its independence in February 2008.
Obama was awarded in 2009 “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples”, despite being responsible for expanding the drone bombing program in Afghanistan and Iraq. And victory is not something he mentions many times – he was surprised and studied the possibility of not traveling to Oslo to receive the prize.
Former committee leader Geir Lundestad expressed regret for the choice in 2015. “Even Obama supporters believed the prize had been a mistake,” he wrote in his memoir. “In that respect, the committee did not achieve what it expected,” he said, indicating that the idea was to reinforce the American president.
But handing over another Nobel Peace Prize to yet another US president – Obama was fourth, after Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson and Jimmy Carter (already after leaving the White House) – does not seem likely. Even more because we are a month away from the presidential elections on November 3rd.
It would be another “October surprise”, after the Republican candidate tested positive for covid-19, and it is not yet clear what impact this will have on the campaign. In American political jargon, the “October surprise” is an unexpected event (some can be planned) that can influence the way voters vote.
Three appointments
Trump was nominated at least three times for the Nobel Prize – by two far-right MPs, one Norwegian and one Swedish, and a group of Australian law professors. The first, Christian Tybring-Gjedde, who had already appointed the US president in 2018, compared the impact of the agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (the news came before the agreement was also known with Bahrain) to the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Swedish MP Magnus Jacobssson did not directly name Trump, but his administration and the governments of Kosovo and Serbia, for the economic agreement they signed. Australian professors have claimed that Trump “is truly producing peace in the world in a way that none of his predecessors did and that he truly deserves the Nobel Peace Prize.”
A group of MEPs from the Dutch extreme right also recently submitted a resolution asking the European Union to nominate Trump, claiming that a “closer look” at his record “can only lead to the conclusion that he has devoted his presidency to world peace. and with considerable success “.
They were the ones to announce the nominations, which have officially been kept secret for half a century, but since they are related to events that occurred in the second half of the year, they should not arrive in time for the 2020 award (nominations must enter until January 31) and can only count to 2021. Still, the White House welcomed when the first nomination was met, with Trump’s press officer Kayleigh McEnany, talking about a “deserved honor” for the president .
But even if there are nominations for Trump for this year’s Nobel Prize, that doesn’t mean he will be honored by the Norwegian Nobel Committee. Especially so close to the US presidentials, despite Trump being the fourth favorite according to bookmakers. Former Vice President Joe Biden, a Democratic White House candidate, was also nominated, but again it will only be in time for the 2021 award. British Labor MP Chris Bryant proposed the name, highlighting “his dedication to the political argument and debate in a troubled period of politics in the USA “.
Bookmarks
Candidates for the Nobel Peace Prize can be nominated by deputies, university professors, previous winners or heads of state, among others. According to the official list of the Nobel Committee, for the prize that will be announced on Friday there are 318 candidates, of which 211 are individuals and 107 organizations. There have been no awards for 19 times – particularly during the two world wars -, in 1972 being the last year in which the prize was not awarded.
In a covid-19 pandemic year, the World Health Organization (WHO) leads the list of bookmakers’ favorites. The United Nations agency, which was created in 1948 to improve global health, is currently led by Ethiopian Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. However, accusations that WHO has failed to respond to the pandemic that has been detected in China and that it is too close to Beijing – some of the reasons that have prompted the United States to announce that they intend to leave the agency – may harm it.
Who has received praise for the way she handled covid-19 is New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Along with what is considered an inspiring leadership, especially after the 2019 attacks on mosques in Christchurch, make it a strong candidate to win this year’s Nobel Peace Prize. However, the fact that the New Zealand elections were postponed – initially planned for September 17, but the pandemic forced them to postpone them until October 17 – also may not play in their favor. The elections are not as disputed as those in the USA (polls put her comfortably in the lead), but even so, the prize might not be well seen due to the proximity to going to the polls.
Another favorite – as she had been last year – is young Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. Despite the fact that the theme seems to have been overlooked because of the covid-19, it marked the year 2019 and the appointments ended on January 31, so the 17-year-old teenager who launched the strikes for classes for the climate may be among the appointed. Experts believe that if he wins, he will do so with other activists, also to draw attention to the fact that the problem is worldwide.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which already won in 1954 and 1981, is another that is well placed on the betting lists. Two other organizations are in the top 10: the European Union, which would be strange in a Brexit year, and Reporters without Borders. The Black Lives Matter movement (black lives count) also enters this ranking, but the choice of the anti-racism movement, which has its main focus on the USA, could also be considered too political on the eve of the US presidentials.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in, for his dialogue efforts with North Korea, is also on the list of favorites, ending with former Microsoft boss Bill Gates, who has become a philanthropist.
Last year, the Nobel Peace Prize went to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali, distinguished “for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation and particularly for his decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighboring Eritrea”.
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