'Putin Opponent' Navalny and 'Trump Son-in-Law' Kushner Among Nobel Peace Prize Nominees

Environmental Activist Greta Thunberg, WHO, and Black Lives Matter Movement Also Featured

▲Alexei Navalny

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Detained Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny and the World Health Organization (WHO) have each been nominated for this year's Nobel Peace Prize.

Norwegian parliamentarians are also reportedly supporting Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg as a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize alongside them.

According to major foreign media on the 31st (local time), Navalny was nominated by Russian academics and former Norwegian Prime Minister Ola Elvestuen in recognition of his contributions to the democratization of Russia.

WHO was nominated for its leadership in the international project 'COVAX Facility,' which coordinated joint vaccine procurement and distribution for underdeveloped countries during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thunberg was recognized for her frontline efforts in addressing climate change, and the environmental organization she co-founded, 'Fridays for Future,' was also nominated.

▲Jared Kushner [Image source=Yonhap News]

Additionally, Jared Kushner, former senior advisor to ex-US President Donald Trump and his son-in-law, and Avi Berkowitz, former White House Middle East envoy, were also named as Nobel Peace Prize candidates, according to the British daily The Guardian.

They played a leading role in brokering the 'Abraham Accords,' which established diplomatic relations between Israel and the Gulf countries of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain for the first time.

The Abraham Accords are regarded as having the most remarkable impact in Middle Eastern diplomacy over the past 25 years, a period marked by tensions with Iran.

Following this, the 'Black Lives Matter (BLM)' movement was nominated upon the recommendation of Norwegian parliamentarian Petter Eide.

▲Greta Thunberg [Image source=Yonhap News]

In his nomination letter, Eide stated, "BLM has achieved significant success in raising global awareness about racial discrimination," adding, "Over 90% of BLM protests have been peaceful, and incidents of violence occurred due to police overreach or opposition to the protests."

He emphasized, "BLM is currently the most powerful movement resisting racial inequality."

Meanwhile, while parliamentarians and former heads of state worldwide can nominate candidates for the Nobel Peace Prize, the Nobel Committee does not necessarily approve all nominations.

However, the Oslo International Peace Research Institute noted that Norwegian parliamentarians have consistently identified Nobel Peace Prize laureates since 2014, except for 2019.

The deadline for this year's Nobel Peace Prize nominations was the 1st of this month. The Norwegian Nobel Committee will release a shortlist of candidates by the end of March and announce the laureate in October.

Last year's Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the World Food Programme (WFP). At that time, the Nobel Committee received over 300 nominations.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.