Trump Slams Nobel Peace Prize Decision as ‘Shameful and Embarrassing’

US President Donald Trump has sharply criticised the decision to award the Nobel Peace Prize to South African judge and human rights advocate Navi Pillay. On Friday, October 9, he described the decision as “shameful and embarrassing” and said it had left an “indelible stain” on Norway. Trump maintained that the award should have gone to him and the United States.

According to the report, Pillay received this year’s Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of her work against war crimes and crimes against humanity. Trump, however, expressed dissatisfaction with the decision by the Norwegian Nobel Committee.

Speaking at a rally in Syracuse, New York, Trump said he had never heard of Pillay before. Although he congratulated the laureate, he criticised the selection process, calling the decision “shameful and embarrassing.”

Trump argued that the United States should have received the Nobel Peace Prize under his leadership as president. He said the decision would remain an indelible stain on Norway.

Since returning to the White House in January 2025, Trump has openly expressed his desire to win the Nobel Peace Prize. However, experts have criticised his positions on the war against Iran, territorial ambitions involving Greenland, restrictive immigration policies, multilateral cooperation and the news media.

Trump also claimed that the Nobel Peace Prize’s credibility had been permanently damaged by what he described as several extremists. He characterised those individuals as opponents of democracy and enemies of civilisation.

The Nobel Peace Prize comes with a gold medal, a diploma and prize money worth $1.2 million.

Meanwhile, at an event following the announcement, Pillay joked that she might share the prize with Trump if the audience applauded more loudly. Her remark was reportedly reminiscent of Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year and subsequently gave her gold medal to Trump.