President Donald Trump renewed his campaign for the Nobel Peace Prize on Wednesday, declaring that no previous candidate deserved it more, even as the U.S. war with Iran entered its eighth month and several conflicts he claims to have resolved remained unsettled.
Speaking in the Oval Office two days before the Norwegian Nobel Committee's scheduled Oct. 9 announcement, Trump credited himself with ending eight wars and preventing a global catastrophe. Specialists following the award said his chances remained low.
"There's never been anybody in the history of the Nobel Prize that deserves it more. I settled eight wars. I stopped the total obliteration of the world," Trump said, according to the supplied account citing USA Today.
The president nevertheless questioned whether the committee would recognize him. "I don't know what their decision is going to be," he told reporters, Reuters reported. "They have a reputation for maybe not giving it to people like me."
His latest appeal comes as the Iran conflict complicates his portrayal of his administration's peace record. U.S. and Israeli strikes began on Feb. 28, and the subsequent fighting has disrupted energy markets and pushed up American fuel costs ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
Trump suggested at a Nebraska rally Monday that the war could continue until after the elections. Russia's war in Ukraine also remains unresolved, despite his campaign promise to end it on his first day back in office.
Several governments have challenged parts of Trump's account of his diplomatic achievements. Pakistan credited him with helping secure its 2025 ceasefire with India, but New Delhi rejected his assertion that he mediated the agreement.
Fighting has also resumed in the Democratic Republic of Congo and along the Cambodia-Thailand border, both among the disputes Trump has cited as successes. Defending his record Wednesday, he said he had used tariffs and other threats to halt conflicts and secured the return of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
"I'm not bragging. I'm just telling you the facts," Trump said, according to USA Today.
Haakon Gjerløw, acting director of the Peace Research Institute Oslo, assessed Trump's chances as "quite low," ABC News Australia reported. He said the committee would consider whether awarding him the prize could cause more harm than good, including concerns about pressure from the president.
Trump also revisited last year's winner, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who dedicated her award to him and presented him with her medal at the White House in January. He described himself Wednesday as "very honored to receive it indirectly last time by the recipient."
The Norwegian Nobel Institute said after that handover that the prize cannot be transferred. Machado received the 2025 award for her work toward a peaceful democratic transition in Venezuela.
This year's field comprises 287 nominees: 208 individuals and 79 organizations. Leaders from Cambodia, Israel and Pakistan have said they nominated Trump, although the committee keeps nomination records confidential for 50 years.
Trump has sought the honor since his first term and repeatedly criticized Barack Obama's 2009 selection. Four American presidents have received the prize: Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Jimmy Carter and Obama.
