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By Gabe Whisnant
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President Donald Trump responded Friday to being passed over for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize with measured remarks, acknowledging Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado’s win and noting that she had credited him in her acceptance remarks.
Trump said that Machado called him personally and publicly dedicated her Nobel Peace Prize to the people of Venezuela and to himself, as she cited an unwavering support in the fight for democracy.
The president said Friday, in part, "The person who actually got the Nobel Prize called today, called me, and said 'I'm accepting this in honor of you, because you really deserved it.' A really nice thing to do.
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He then quipped, "I didn't say, 'Then give it to me, though.' I think she might have."
Machado's stance against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro aligns with the Trump administration’s own policy on Venezuela. Secretary of State Marco Rubio previously praised Machado as “the personification of resilience, tenacity and patriotism.”
Why It Matters
Three sitting U.S. presidents have received the Nobel Peace Prize: Theodore Roosevelt in 1906, Woodrow Wilson in 1919 and Barack Obama in 2009. Former President Jimmy Carter won the award in 2002, two decades after leaving office, and former Vice President Al Gore received it in 2007.
Obama, a Democrat and frequent target of Trump’s criticism long before the Republican’s election, earned the prize early in his presidency.
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What to Know
There had been widespread speculation before the announcement that Trump might win the prize, fueled partly by his own comments and heightened this week by the approval of his Gaza Strip ceasefire plan.
The first phase, agreed by Israel and Hamas, includes a ceasefire, the release of Israeli captives in exchange for roughly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, and a phased Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. The second phase proposes a new governing authority excluding Hamas, a multinational Palestinian-Arab security force, and Arab and Islamic funding for reconstruction, with limited participation from the Palestinian Authority.
In his response on Friday, Trump recognized the magnitude of this week's Gaza deal and listed out several of the wars that he has had a hand in conflict resolution talks.
The president often brags about having ended seven other wars, having had a hand in conflict resolution talks between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, Thailand and Cambodia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, Egypt and Ethiopia, Serbia and Kosovo, a disputed role in mediating an end to the four-day fight between Indian and Pakistan in May and pulling the plug on the so-called "12-Day War" the following month between Iran and Israel after the unprecedented U.S. bombing of Iranian nuclear sites.
"To the mind of most, [Gaza] it's the most important deal ever made in terms of peace. Monday's going to be a very big deal when the hostages come back. But I've made eight deals, transactions of wars."
"I’m happy that I saved millions of lives."
Earlier Friday, the White House reacted sharply after the Nobel Peace Prize was announced, with officials criticizing the committee for overlooking Trump. Communications director Steven Cheung said the Nobel Committee “proved they place politics over peace” by not recognizing Trump, particularly after his administration helped broker a ceasefire in Gaza earlier this week.
“Hopefully, you’re going to have success — or as I call it, everlasting success,” Trump said.
Trump, who has long sought the prestigious honor, has been vocal about his desire for a Nobel Peace Prize throughout both of his presidential terms, recently citing his role in ending global conflicts. The Republican president has also questioned whether the Nobel Committee would ever grant him the award.
Trump also said Friday that this year's peace prize was "given for 2024, and I was running for office in 2024." There's some truth to that — the nomination deadline for the 2025 award was Feb. 1, just a week and a half into his second term.
Although Trump received nominations, many came after the deadline. His name was formally submitted in December by Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney of New York, who cited his role in brokering the 2020 Abraham Accords that normalized relations between Israel and several Arab nations.
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What People Are Saying
Jørgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said the committee has seen various campaigns in its long history of awarding the peace prize: “We receive thousands and thousands of letters every year of people wanting to say what for them leads to peace. This committee sits in a room filled with the portraits of all laureates, and that room is filled with both courage and integrity. So, we base only our decision on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel.”
Frydnes declined to say what it might take for Trump or others to win the peace prize in the future, or whether efforts to end the fighting in Gaza could lead to an award in 2026: “It’s not our task to tell other people or other countries what to do — our task is to give out the Peace Prize. So, we’ll have to see next year.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on X, “The facts speak for themselves. President #Trump deserves it.”
What Happens Next
Trump will visit Israel first, followed by Egypt, during his upcoming trip to the Middle East to mark a newly brokered ceasefire and hostage release deal. Trump confirmed he will address the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, and said he expects to meet with “leaders from all over the world” while in Egypt.
The president expressed optimism that the ceasefire, which took effect earlier Friday, will endure.
Updates: 10/10/25, 7:41 p.m. ET: This article was updated with new information and remarks.
Updates: 10/10/25, 8:23 p.m. ET: This article was updated with new information and remarks.
This article includes reporting by the Associated Press.
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