President Donald Trump was nominated for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize by a far-right Norwegian lawmaker, citing the president’s role in the recent peace deal between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.
Christian Tybring-Gjedde, a member of the Norwegian Parliament for the far-right Progress Party, explained, “For his merit, I think he has done more trying to create peace between nations than most other peace prize nominees.”
Tybring-Gjedde clarified that he was not a Trump supporter, adding, “The committee should look at the facts and judge him on the facts – not on the way he behaves sometimes.”
“No matter how Trump acts at home and what he says at press conferences, he has absolutely a chance at getting the Nobel Peace Prize.”
According the a statement issued by the White House on Wednesday, Trump was nominated for “his leadership in brokering the Abraham Accords, bringing about the full normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and marking a major step toward a more peaceful Middle East.”
White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Wednesday said, “This is a hard earned and well-deserved honour for this president. Career politicians merely talk about the kind of results that this president has achieved on the world stage.”
Tybring-Gjedde’s daughter Mathilde, who is a member of Parliament for the center-right Conservative Party, is one of those who criticized the nomination.
“I did not nominate Donald Trump as I do not believe he is qualified to receive the Nobel Peace Prize,” she said.
“The prize is given to those who have ‘done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.’ Donald Trump does not come to mind when I read this description.”
This is not the first time Mr. Tybring-Gjedde nominated Trump for a Nobel.
In 2018, Tybring-Gjedde and another Norwegian lawmaker nominated Trump for the same prize for his efforts to bring reconciliation to North and South Korea.