The President of the United States, Donald Trump, once again criticized the choice of the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize winner in the early hours of this Saturday (10). In a publication on the Truth Social network, the republican attacked South African jurist Navi Pillay, winner of the award, and stated that he himself should have been awarded the prize. Pillay helped secure, in 1973, the right of political prisoners held on Robben Island, South Africa, to have access to lawyers. Among them was Nelson Mandela, who served time in prison during the apartheid regime.
“The United States of America, represented by me, as your President, should have received the Nobel Peace Prize, but did not,” Trump wrote.
The president claimed to have “resolved eight wars”, to be close to ending two other conflicts and to have guaranteed the freedom of hostages and political prisoners. He also said he had prevented Iran from developing a nuclear weapon and criticized the Norwegian Nobel Committee, calling the decision “an unforgettable stain on Norway”.
The statements about the conflicts reflect Trump's version of his diplomatic performance. The resolution of international disputes does not necessarily mean that all conflicts have been definitively ended.
“In fact, I should have won eight Nobel Peace Prizes, not just one,” he said.
The eight conflicts cited by Trump are: Cambodia and Thailand; Kosovo and Serbia; Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda; Pakistan and India; Israel and Iran; Egypt and Ethiopia; Armenia and Azerbaijan; and Israel and Hamas.
When directly attacking the Nobel laureate, Trump stated that “no one knew her” and said that she “obviously hates Israel”.
Pillay chaired an independent UN commission of inquiry that concluded, in 2025, that Israel committed genocide in the Gaza Strip. The conclusion was rejected by Israel and rejected by Washington. Not only that: the jurist was also a judge at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the 2000s and held the position of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The performance of international courts is among the points of friction between the Trump administration and multilateral institutions. On Friday (9), hours after the announcement of the Nobel Peace Prize, the United States announced new sanctions against the ICC. The measure seeks to put pressure on the Court and may affect people and organizations that provide services or collaborate with the court.
The American Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, justified the sanctions with what he called threats to United States citizens, in reference to the possibility of Americans being the target of international proceedings. “Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC,” Rubio said. The secretary also asked allies of the United States to pressure the Court.
"The Nobel Prize was awarded today to a liberal person who works at the United Nations, whom no one has ever heard of. In all the wars I have resolved, I have never spoken to the United Nations — they have not helped me at all," he wrote in his outburst.
The selection of Navi Pillay was also presented by the Norwegian Nobel Committee as a message in defense of the international legal order. Asked by a journalist whether the award was a message to the world, the committee's president, Jørgen Watne Frydnes, stated, without mentioning Trump, that the award was a signal “to those who are attacking and weakening the international system”.
In the statement, the committee highlighted the jurist's trajectory in defending human rights and international law. “Navi Pillay’s commitment to universal legal principles and his firm moral compass have been constant throughout his extensive career,” said Frydnes.
Born in Durban, South Africa, into a family of Indian Tamil origin, Pillay built her legal career during apartheid, facing racial discrimination and barriers imposed on women. Among the main milestones in its trajectory are:
Defense of political prisoners: helped secure access for Robben Island prisoners, including Nelson Mandela, to lawyers in 1973;
Pioneering in South African Justice: she became the first non-white woman to open a law firm in the province of Natal and was later appointed to the Supreme Court of South Africa;
Tribunal for Rwanda: presided over the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, which tried crimes committed during the 1994 genocide;
Human rights at the UN: she was United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights;
Gaza investigation: chaired the independent UN commission of inquiry that concluded, in 2025, that Israel committed genocide in the Gaza Strip.
Pillay is the 21st woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, out of a total of 144 individual laureates and organizations, according to the award's historical count. The honor includes a medal, a diploma and a cash value of 11 million Swedish kronor.
