Nobel foundation withdraws invitation to Russia, Belarus

Stockholm [Sweden]: After facing widespread criticism, the Nobel Foundation finally withdrew its invitations to three countries: Russia, Iran and Belarus, saying that the invitations had provoked “strong reactions,” CNN reported.

In a press release, the Nobel Foundation on Saturday said that the ambassadors from the three countries (Russia, Belarus and Iran) would not be invited, after initially saying that it wanted to involve even those who did not share the values of the Nobel Prize.

Ukraine had condemned the decision to invite the Russian and Belarusian ambassadors. A Swedish member of the European Parliament called the decision “extremely inappropriate.”
Last year, Russian and Belarusian ambassadors were left out of Stockholm’s Nobel Prize awards ceremony because of the war in Ukraine.

“The decision by the Nobel Foundation to invite all ambassadors to the Nobel Prize award ceremony, in accordance with previous practice, has provoked strong reactions,” the foundation said in its statement on Saturday, adding that the basis for the decision is the belief that “it is important and right to reach out as widely as possible with the values and messages that the Nobel Prize stands for.”

“For example, through last year’s clear political message with the peace prize awarded to human rights fighters from Russia and Belarus as well as to Ukrainians who work with documenting Russian war crimes,” CNN quoted a statement saying.

The foundation further stated that they recognize the strong reactions in Sweden, which completely overshadowed this message. And, therefore, choose to repeat last year’s exception to regular practice – that is, to not invite the ambassadors of Russia, Belarus and Iran to the Nobel Prize award ceremony in Stockholm.

The move on Saturday was welcomed by the Swedish prime minister and Ukrainian officials.

“I welcome the new decision of the board of the Nobel Foundation regarding the Nobel Prize award ceremony in Stockholm,” Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Oleg Nikolenko, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs, called the reversal a “restoration of justice” in a post on Facebook, as per CNN.

The Nobel Banquet takes place annually in Stockholm on December 10, where five out of six Nobel Prizes are awarded. The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded in Oslo, Norway.

The Russia-Ukraine war that started on February 24, 2022, has taken numerous lives and the war continues to escalate between the two nations even now.