"Nobel Prize Decided On Basis Of Work Done": Panel On White House Criticism

The Norwegian Committee has responded to US President Donald Trump's campaign to secure the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, saying it won't be influenced by political pressure. 

After Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was honoured with the Peace Prize, committee chair Jorgen Watne Frydnes said the body makes the decision "only on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel".

He added that over the years, the committee has seen many such campaigns that sought to influence their decision. "We receive thousands and thousands of letters every year from people wanting to say what, for them, leads to peace," he said.

But the honour is meant for people who truly worked for peace, he added. 

The five-member committee meets in a special room where the walls are covered with portraits of people who have won the Peace Prize in the past, he said. That room reminds them of the courage and honesty of those past winners, he added.

"This committee sits in a room filled with the portraits of all laureates, and that room is filled with both courage and integrity. So we base our decision on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel," Frydnes said.

Soon after Machado was named the honouree, the White House accused the committee of "placing politics over peace."

"Once again, the Nobel Committee has proved they place politics over peace. President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives," White House spokesperson Steven Cheung wrote on social media platform X.

"He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will," he continued.

Trump, meanwhile, pointed out that Machado called him and said she accepted the award in his honour because she thought he really deserved it. "I didn't say, then give it to me. I think she might have. She was very nice," he added. 

Trump also suggested that the Nobel Prize was usually given based on achievements from the previous year, meaning the 2025 award was for work done in 2024, the reason he did not receive the prize.

"You could also say it was given out for 2024, and I was running for office in 2024," he quipped.

Trump has often said that he deserves the Nobel Award and that he has ended seven wars during his tenure. 

"They said they were unendable, some were going for 31 years, one was 36 years. I ended seven wars, and in all cases they were raging with countless thousands of people being killed," he said.

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