Why Trump didn’t win Nobel Peace Prize? Nobel Committee says it chose Maria Corina Machado due to…

The Nobel Committee on Friday announced Venezuelan activist and opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was Friday announced as the winner of Nobel Peace Prize 2025, ending US President Doland Trump’s hopes of winning the prestigious award., which he had campaigned for since assuming office for his second term in January this year.

Why Nobel picked Machado over Trump for peace prize?

Following the announcement, the White House accused the Nobel Committee of placing “politics over peace” however, the committee defended its pick, stating that its decisions are follow the vision of Alfred Nobel– the Swedish inventor and business tycoon who bequeathed his fortune to establish the Nobel prizes.

“This committee sits in a room filled with the portraits of all laureates, and that room is filled with both courage and integrity. We base our decisions on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel,” Nobel Committee chairperson Jørgen Watne Frydnes, replied when asked why Doland Trump was not considered for Nobel Peace Prize 2025.

“I think the main takeaway is that the committee is again demonstrating its independence, that they wouldn’t be swayed by popular opinions or political leaders to award the prize,” Reuters quoted Halvard Leira, research director at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, as saying.

Will Trump challenge Nobel Committee’s decision?

Leira noted that it will be hard for Trump to challenge the Nobel committee’s decision as the US government and the President himself have been critical of President Nicolás Maduro’s regime in Venezuela.

“Trump will interpret this as he wants to, but this is a prize given to a cause which the United States has very much supported over the years. The democratic opposition of Venezuela is something that the US has been eager to support. So, in that sense, it would be hard for anyone to constitute this as an insult to Trump,” she said.

Can Trump win the award next year?

While many believe that Doland Trump would have had a better claim if the Israel-Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal had materialized before the committee made its decision on Friday, critics argue that the 47th US President’s policies are viewed as a threat to the global rules-based order cherished by Nobel.

Therefore, its unlikely that Trump will be bestowed with the Nobel Peace Prize, which was earlier awarded to four American presidents — Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Jimmy Carter, and Barack Obama.

Why Venezuela’s Machado was picked for peace prize?

According to the Nobel Committee, Maria Corina Machado was chosen for the Nobel Peace Prize 2025 “for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”

The Norwegian Nobel Committee called Machado a “brave and committed champion of peace,” and asserted the peace prize has been bestowed on a “woman who keeps the flame of democracy burning amid a growing darkness.”

“Democracy is a precondition for lasting peace. However, we live in a world where democracy is in retreat, where more and more authoritarian regimes are challenging norms and resorting to violence,” it said, noting that Machado has spent years working for the freedom of the Venezuelan people.

“The Venezuelan regime’s rigid hold on power and its repression of the population are not unique in the world. We see the same trends globally: rule of law abused by those in control, free media silenced, critics imprisoned, and societies pushed towards authoritarian rule and militarisation. In 2024, more elections were held than ever before, but fewer and fewer are free and fair,” the Nobel Committee said.

(With inputs from agencies)