Athletes dream of Olympic medals, Hollywood stars strive for an Oscar and world leaders hunger for the Nobel Peace Prize. Win this great gong and you are instantly in the company of Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King and the Dalai Lama. With President Trump preparing for a new push to end the carnage in Ukraine, does he think he has a serious chance of winning this honour? Last month his press secretary said: “It is well past time that President Trump was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.”
Senior figures in a host of countries, ranging from Cambodia to Pakistan have pledged to nominate him for the award. It is not quite so outlandish a possibility as it sounds. While the Nobel committee likes to honour the like of Desmond Tutu, some of the most controversial figures in modern history have made the trip to Oslo.
Henry Kissinger and his North Vietnamese counterpart North Vietnam’s Le Duc Tho were awarded the prize in 1973 for their role in securing a ceasefire. Likewise, PLO chairman Yasser Arafat was among those given the accolade in 1994 for his efforts to secure peace in the Middle East.
The President’s critics will guffaw and groan at the idea of Trump joining this honour roll and argue he endangers stability abroad while threatening traditions of liberal democracy at home.
But it is no bad thing for a president to thirst for renown as a peacemaker. If he can succeed where Europe and his predecessor failed and secure Ukraine’s freedom then he deserves commendation.
And if the possibility of a Nobel Prize keeps him investing time and treasure in efforts to halt wars, then it would be churlish for anyone on the committee to stamp on this aspiration.
One of the great worries when he won the presidency was that America would withdraw from the world. We need this superpower engaged on the greatest issues of our time.
Democrats Woodrow Wilson, Jimmy Carter and Al Gore and Barack Obama were all granted the prize. Joining this club may be a long-shot for President Trump, but if he is intent on striking peace deals which will shape history for the better then we should all be glad.
Of course, when he leaves office and pens his memoirs another ambition might percolate. It won’t have escaped his attention that Winston Churchill won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1953. But right now, he needs to win his place in history on the side of the angels.