Not winning Nobel would be ‘insult’ to US, says Trump in address to military generals

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday claimed that it would be an “insult” to the United States if he is not awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, citing what he described as his role in resolving various international conflicts during his presidency.

Speaking at a gathering of top US military officers, Trump dismissed the likelihood of receiving the prestigious award but said it would reflect poorly on the nation.

“Will you get the Nobel Prize? Absolutely not. They’ll give it to some guy that didn’t do a damn thing,” AFP quoted Trump as saying.

“It’d be a big insult to our country,” he added.

Trump joined Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday to address a gathering of top US military generals at a high-profile event in Quantico. The appearance came as part of the administration’s renewed push to overhaul the culture and standards within the armed forces.

During his remarks, Hegseth announced a comprehensive review of military standards across all branches, vowing to eliminate what he described as “woke garbage” and shift focus solely to merit-based performance.

“There will be no more politics in promotions, no more distractions. Standards will be based on merit — nothing else,” Hegseth told the assembled officers.

Trump, speaking after Hegseth, touched on a wide range of global and domestic topics.

At one point, he expressed frustration over the possibility of not receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, despite claiming significant contributions to international diplomacy — though he also insisted he didn’t personally desire the award.

“The Nobel prize will go to a writer. We’ll see what happens, but it would be a big insult to our country,” Trump said. “I will tell you I don’t want it, I want the country to get it. It should get it because there’s never been anything like it.”

Trump claimed his approach to negotiations had already resulted in eight deals, with one more pending.

“Think of it. If this happens — I think it will, I don’t say that lightly — I know more about deals than anybody. This can change. We have just about everybody. We have one signature that we need and that signature will pay in hell if they don’t sign. I hope they sign for their own good and we create something really great. But to have done eight of them is just like such an honor.”

Turning to Russia’s war in Ukraine, Trump predicted a peace agreement between Presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy would be “the easiest one of them all.”

“I said that one will get done. I thought it would be first. Some of them are much harder,” he added.

Trump has claimed credit for halting seven international conflicts — including those involving Israel and Iran, India and Pakistan, Armenia and Azerbaijan, Congo and Rwanda, Serbia and Kosovo, Egypt and Ethiopia, and even Thailand and Cambodia.

However, several of these were not full-scale wars, some of the conflicts remain unresolved, and in many cases, Trump’s role was minimal or indirect. Countries like India have explicitly denied any US involvement in their disputes. Independent fact-checkers have consistently found Trump’s claims to be exaggerated or misleading.

With inputs from agencies