'Can't Make S**t Up': Norwegians Jeer as NATO Boss Nominated for Nobel Peace Prize
06:43 GMT 02.02.2023 (Updated: 08:10 GMT 02.02.2023)
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According to Alfred Nobel's will, the peace prize should go "to the person who has done the most or best to advance fellowship among nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies, and the establishment and promotion of peace congresses" - a definition hardly met by the leader of the world's largest military alliance.
As the deadline for nominating candidates for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize has expired, a Norwegian MP from the populist Progress Party Christian Tybring-Gjedde has admitted that he was the one who proposed NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg for the award.
Justifying his choice, Tybring-Gjedde claimed that Stoltenberg "managed to bring NATO together at a very important and demanding time, which is perhaps the biggest crisis since the Second World War." He also lauded Stoltenberg for "acting diplomatically" in defending Swedish and Finnish membership, while at the same time "showing an understanding" of Turkey’s objections.
In an interview with Norwegian media, Tybring-Gjedde said he saw no paradox in nominating a leader of a military alliance for a peace prize, stressing that Alfred Nobel, the founder of the prize, maintained that "actively seeking peace" was the main criteria. This despite the fact that members of NATO are actively fanning the flames of the Ukraine conflict by donating arms and providing military training to Kiev.
Tybring-Gjedde also ventured that not all nominees or recipients end up strictly fulfilling Nobel’s own criteria, citing the example of environmental activist Wangari Maathai who received the prize in 2004 — "for planting trees", as he put it.
"You cannot get the peace prize just because you are a kind person," Tybring-Gjedde mused. He furthermore ventured that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky deserved the prize, yet admitted that he was "indeed in the middle of a war."
According to Alfred Nobel's will, the peace prize should go "to the person who has done the most or best to advance fellowship among nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies, and the establishment and promotion of peace congresses."
Previously, Tybring-Gjedde nominated Donald Trump for the peace prize, drawing criticism and ridicule alike. This time, however, an even larger storm gathered on social media in protest of the nomination.
"War-monger Stoltenberg has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. You can't make this s**t up," one user tweeted.
Screetgrab of tweets commenting on Jens Stoltenberg nomination for Nobel Peace Prize
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"The same person who nominated Trump for the Peace Prize in 2020 is now nominating former head of Labor party, Stoltenberg. I didn't see that coming. Are they completely nuts?" another one mused.
Screetgrab of tweets commenting on Jens Stoltenberg nomination for Nobel Peace Prize
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"So now both Greta Thunberg and Jens Stoltenberg have been proposed for the Nobel Peace Prize. Can someone explain to me why it is so hard to understand 'PEACE,' something I don’t associate with the either one," yet another wrote.
Screetgrab of tweets commenting on Jens Stoltenberg nomination for Nobel Peace Prize
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"Jens Stoltenberg nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize… Yeah, that's nearly comical…And Zelensky? Sure, just go for it. The rest of the world, outside of the West, will laugh itself to death... Choose one of these and once and for all, you have made a complete mockery of this 'peace prize!'" another one scoffed.
Screetgrab of tweets commenting on Jens Stoltenberg nomination for Nobel Peace Prize
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The list of nominees submitted to the committee is kept secret, in line with Nobel statutes. However, those eligible to nominate people — such as former laureates, lawmakers, cabinet ministers from any country in the world and university professors — are free to reveal their proposals.
Others known to have been nominated this year include Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, proposed by the speaker of the Pakistani parliament, for his "untiring" efforts to resolve the Ukrainian crisis.
