June 23, 2025
ISLAMABAD – Pakistani politicians on Sunday raised their concerns over the government’s decision to recommend US President Donald Trump for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize, as Washington joined Israel’s war with Iran.
The government had decided to nominate Trump for the prestigious award to hail his “decisive diplomatic intervention and pivotal leadership” during last month’s Pak-India conflict, when both neighbours stepped back from the brink of war with US mediation.
In a statement, it had highlighted that Trump “demonstrated great strategic foresight and stellar statesmanship through robust diplomatic engagement with both Islamabad and New Delhi”, which ultimately secured a ceasefire.
However, after the US bombed Iran’s Fordow, Isfahan and Natanz nuclear sites, with Trump saying they were “totally obliterated”, leaders across the political spectrum joined Pakistani citizens in voicing their reservations.
Veteran politician Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who heads his own faction of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F), demanded that the government rescind its decision.
“President Trump’s claim of peace has proven to be false, the proposal for the Nobel Prize should be withdrawn,” Fazl told workers at a party meeting in Murree today, according to a JUI-F statement.
He said that Trump’s recent meeting and lunch with Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir “pleased Pakistani rulers so much” that they recommended nominating the US president for the Nobel prize.
The JUI-F chief noted that Trump won the presidential election with the slogan of peace but was “proven false in his claim”.
Fazl said that when Pakistan “destroyed India’s defence force”, President Trump intervened and said he had declared a ceasefire.
“[But] Trump has supported the Israeli attacks on Palestine, Syria, Lebanon and Iran. How can this be a sign of peace?” Fazl questioned. “With the blood of Afghans and Palestinians on America’s hands, how can he claim to be a proponent of peace?”
Trump campaigned for office as a “peacemaker” who would use his negotiating skills to quickly end wars in Ukraine and Gaza, although both conflicts are still raging five months into his presidency.
The US has several times vetoed resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza at the UN Security Council, the latest earlier this month.
Fazl said his party was in favour of friendship with the US but not of its “slavery”.
“National sovereignty, the right of the people to govern themselves, and economic freedom should be maintained in relations with America,” the JUI-F chief asserted.
Fazl further said that in the last three months, a US delegation has visited him three times, after which he attended their diplomatic ceremony in Islamabad.
He also expressed his view that the attacks on Iran were an attempt to stop China’s economic growth in the Middle East. China is the largest importer of Iranian oil.
“Pakistan’s economic strength in the region has been affected the most. The economic balance is shifting towards Asia instead of Europe, which is a good omen for Asia,” he said.
‘Trump no longer a potential peacemaker’
Calls to reconsider the government’s decision also came from other politicians.
Former senator Mushahid Hussain wrote on X: “Since Trump is no longer a potential peacemaker, but a leader who has willfully unleashed an illegal war, [the] Pakistan government must now review, rescind and revoke his Nobel nomination!”
He said Trump had been “trapped by Netanyahu and Israeli war lobby, committing [the] biggest blunder of his presidency”.
“Trump will now end up presiding over [the] decline of America!”
Trump “engaged in deception and betrayed his own promise not to start new wars”, Mushahid said in another post, strongly condemning the US attacks on Iran.
Hussain, former chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Defence, had previously said that if the nomination “panders to Trump’s ego, so be it”.
PTI MNA Ali Muhammad Khan wrote “reconsider” in all caps on his X account, highlighting the “US attack on Iran and continuous US support of Israeli killings in Gaza”.
In a separate post, the opposition PTI condemned the “unprovoked” US strikes and voiced “total support” for Iran’s sovereignty.
Raoof Hasan, head of PTI’s political think-tank, said the government’s decision was now a “cause of unmitigated shame and embarrassment for those who were instrumental in making the choice”.
“That’s why it is said that legitimacy can neither be bought nor gifted,” said Hasan, as he took a jibe at the government. He also denounced the US’s “total disregard for international covenants” through the attacks on Iran.
Former senator Afrasiab Khattak said, “The sycophancy adopted by [the] Pakistani ruling elite in nominating President Trump for Nobel Peace Prize is not part of normative conduct in international diplomacy.”
“It was most embarrassing to announce the nomination hours before Trump ordered to bomb Iranian nuclear sites,” the veteran politician noted.
Jamaat-i-Islami chief Naeemur Rehman has said the decision “undermines our national dignity and grace”.
Maleeha Lodhi, Pakistan’s former ambassador to the US, has termed the move “unfortunate” and said it did not reflect the public’s views.
Among other notable individuals was senior journalist Mariana Baabar, who wrote on X that “today Pakistan does not look too good either”, sharing the government’s post announcing its intention to nominate Trump for the Nobel.
Author and activist Fatima Bhutto asked: “Will Pakistan withdraw its nomination for him to receive the Nobel Peace Prize?”
Trump has received multiple Nobel Peace Prize nominations from supporters and loyal lawmakers over the years.
He has openly expressed his frustration over missing out on the prestigious award, most recently mentioning it during a February Oval Office meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Former US president Barack Obama won the prize soon after taking office in 2009, and Trump complained during his 2024 election campaign that his Democratic predecessor was not worthy of the honour.
