According to Reuters report on October 1st local time, experts pointed out that since the United States is in a state of war with Iran, U.S. President Donald Trump will not be eligible for this year's Nobel Peace Prize. However, the committee responsible for selecting the winner will still be influenced by his decision-making.
Last year, Trump lobbied multiple times to obtain the award, but it was ultimately awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader Maduro. Just a few weeks later, Maduro even "gifted" Trump her Nobel Peace Prize medal in order to seek Trump’s support.
The acting director of the Oslo Institute for Peace Studies in Norway, Haakon Gjerloew, said that this year, the five-member Norwegian Nobel Committee will pay special attention to selecting a candidate who can withstand pressure from Trump.
I believe that the events surrounding the Nobel Peace Prize awarded last year, namely when Mandela gave his award to Trump, will influence some of the committee's considerations," he said. "One possible concern for the committee is whether awarding the prize to someone would put them under pressure from Trump... I think the committee will weigh whether the benefits outweigh the costs or vice versa."
On September 2, 2025, protesters held a protest outside the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, holding pictures of Trump and demanding the release of Israeli hostages detained in the Gaza Strip.
The list of Nobel Peace Prize winners for this year will be announced on October 9. According to expert analysis cited by Reuters, the potential winners could be Pope Leo XIV, the International Criminal Court (ICC), the International Court of Justice (ICJ), or Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
Leo XIV was the first Pope to be born in the United States. Previously, he was labeled "weak" by Trump for criticizing the US-Iran war. However, he stated that he would continue to publicly oppose wars.
Reports say that the Pope's views on artificial intelligence, his advocacy for dialogue and peaceful resolution of conflicts, his call for respect for immigrants, and his humanitarian work could all be reasons for him being awarded this prize.
Karim Haggag, director of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute in Sweden, told Reuters: "The identity of the Pope is not limited to being a religious leader. He has become an important ideological leader."
Meanwhile, Italian Albenese was criticized by the United States and Israel for his criticism of Israel's military operations in Gaza and its illegal occupation of West Bank.
