WASHINGTON (BN24) — Donald Trump is accelerating his campaign for the Nobel Peace Prize, presenting himself as a global “peacemaker” while preparing for a high-stakes meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. The push marks a striking shift from his first term, when he dismissed the idea of the award despite brokering normalization deals between Israel and several Arab states.
Now, aides say Trump not only wants the Nobel, but is actively working for it. The White House has amplified his role in a series of diplomatic breakthroughs, from easing tensions between Israel and Iran to mediating disputes in Armenia and Azerbaijan, Cambodia and Thailand, and Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Leaders of several of those nations have publicly backed his candidacy.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said last month that Trump has “brokered, on average, about one peace deal or ceasefire per month” during his six months back in office. She has raised the Nobel in three of her last four press briefings, while Trump has mentioned it seven times on social media since January, including six posts in June and July.
Friday’s meeting with Putin in Alaska could be the defining moment. If Trump can negotiate a ceasefire acceptable to Kyiv, it would be a diplomatic feat that eluded both Barack Obama and Joe Biden. The conflict has claimed nearly 1.5 million lives, and expectations for a breakthrough are tempered by deep divisions between Moscow and Kyiv.
The Nobel selection process remains beyond political influence. The five-member Norwegian committee operates independently, and deliberations are secret for 50 years. Past winners loom large in Trump’s orbit — from Theodore Roosevelt, who mediated the end of the Russo-Japanese War in 1906, to Obama, who received the prize less than a year into his presidency.
Despite his claims of promoting global fraternity, Trump’s “America First” trade policies, tariff disputes, and controversial suggestions to acquire Greenland, Canada, and the Panama Canal have strained some alliances. A former British diplomat described his Nobel push as “something of a joke in foreign capitals.”
Trump has nevertheless continued to cultivate endorsements. At a White House meeting last week, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev both voiced support for his Nobel bid. Pashinyan told Trump, “Hopefully you will invite us” to the ceremony. Trump replied: “Front row.”
Whether the Nobel committee will be swayed remains uncertain. As one Western diplomat put it: “This is not something you campaign for. You can’t buy it. Norway doesn’t need the money.”
