Zeenews Bureau
Oslo, Norway: US President Barack Obama on Thursday said the nonviolence practiced by such leaders as Mahatma Gandhi and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. should be a guiding force. He was making a speech after he accpted the Nobel Peace Prize in a glittering ceremony here this evening.
Obama with a touch of humility said, “I receive this honour with a deep breath as there are many others more deserving of the same." In the beginning of the speech, the US President defended the anti-war strategy of the US which is being supported by other nations including Norway.
Obama was earlier lauded in the ceremony for working to advance intl diplomacy and harmony.
The fourth US President to be honoured with the Nobel Peace Prize, Obama was lauded for his efforts to create a nuclear-free world. As also for working towards combating global warming, and promoting international diplomacy and peace amidst the backdrop of conflicts prevailing in the world of today.
He was praised in the speech preceding his receiving the Nobel for initiating so many major changes in such a short time.
In his speech he gave while recieving the prize, Obama praised non-violence practiced by such leaders as Gandhi and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.and said that that would be a guiding force.
He mentioned that he was the leader of a nation in the midst of two wars. While highlighting the Afghan war, he said that Afghanistan was a conflict that the US did not seek and went on to accept the responsibility for the deployment of thousands in the war.
Simultaneously, the President indicated that there were imperatives of a just war, while talking of the imperatives of a just peace.
While praising the strategy of non-violence which was propagated by Mahatma Gandhi, he quoted Martin Luther King saying, “Violence never brings permanent peace.”
Obama was honoured for his contribution towards aimign for a nuclear-free world, combating global warming and promoting international diplomacy and harmony in a world beset with conflicts.
A humble US President Barack Obama told reporters prior to being awarded the peace prize, that others may be "more deserving" of it.
First Published: Friday, December 11, 2009, 08:55