President Donald Trump has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize after being put forward as a candidate by a right-wing Norwegian politician and lawmaker.
Christian Tybring-Gjedde said the president should receive the reward for his work in brokering peace deals in the Middle East. Recently the US oversaw deals between Israel and both the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain that will normalise relations between the states.
Tybring-Gjedde represents the right-wing Progress Party in the Norwegian Parliament and has been criticised for his views on immigration and Islam, which some have branded 'racist'. He at one time compared the hijab to Nazi uniforms. He is also highly pro-Israel and believes that climate change is a hoax, all views similar to those expressed by Trump himself.
Tybring-Gjedde said regarding the nomination:
"The people who have received the Peace Prize in recent years have done much less than Donald Trump. For example, Barack Obama did nothing."
The US Ambassador to Iceland said in a tweet:
"No one has ever done this! Twice in one month! @realDonaldTrump has brokered yet another Peace deal in the Middle East. This time it's Bahrain & Israel. Historic & no one more deserving of the Noble Peace Prize 2021 than our President!"
No one has ever done this! Twice in one month! @realDonaldTrump has brokered yet another Peace deal in the Middle East. This time it’s Bahrain & Israel. Historic & no one more deserving of the Noble Peace Prize 2021 than our President! 🇺🇸🇧ðŸ‡ðŸ‡®ðŸ‡± https://t.co/w2drjdqTWz
— Ambassador Gunter (@USAmbIceland) September 12, 2020
This isn't the first time Trump has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize, in 2018 Tybring-Gjedde also put forward the president. On that occasion Trump did not win and was beaten by Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad for their efforts against the use of sexual violence in war. Murad, a Yazidi woman, escaped violence at the hands of ISIS in Iraq after being held in slavery for 3 months.
While some may mock Trump's nomination, the deals made between Israel and Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates are major changes in the Middle-East. Up until 2020, Israel only had normal diplomatic ties with Egypt and Jordan within the Arab world. The deal has however been criticised by Palestinian leaders who see the move as Arab states turning their backs on them, particularly as Israel seeks to dominate more and more of the West Bank.
Trump has also recently overseen a peace deal between Kosovo and Serbia which will see the nations normalise ties. It will also see Kosovo recognising Israel as a state and Serbia moving its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem – a controversial move.
The results of this year's Nobel prize will be announced on the 9th of October.
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