The President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy and President of the Commission José Manuel Barosso said it is a great honour for the EU to be awarded the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize.
They said: This Prize is the strongest possible recognition of the deep political motives behind our Union: the unique effort by ever more European states to overcome war and divisions and to jointly shape a continent of peace and prosperity. It is a Prize not just for the project and the institutions embodying a common interest, but for the 500 million citizens living in our Union.
Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said: " On behalf of the Norwegian Government I would like to congratulate the European Union on the award of the Nobel Peace Prize for 2012. Today's announcement is a clear recognition of the significance of the EU for ensuring lasting stability and security in Europe."
“The horrific events of the two World Wars led to a realisation that the countries in Europe needed to stand together. The EU has played a key role in democracy-building in the former dictatorships in southern Europe. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the EU continued to safeguard peace by enlarging the union to include the new democracies of Central and Eastern Europe,” Mr Stoltenberg said.
“These are projects of historical significance that have helped to secure peace and stability in Europe,” Prime Minister Stoltenberg said.
Head of the Government's coalition party Socialist Left (SV), Audun Lysbakken, on the other hand, says EU often leads a policy which weakens the democracy.
Christian Democrats (KrF) Dagrunn Etriksen is also sceptical to the Nobel Committee's decision.
Jan Tore Sanner, Deputy leader of the Conservative Party (Høyre), says this is a good day for Europe.
He hopes people are now able to lift their sights to see what the EU has meant in a historic perspective:
- Ever since the Second World War the EU has contributed to peace and freedom in Europe, Sanner says.
He is of the opinion that the EU ought to have been awarded the Peace Prize a long time ago.
(NRK/Press release)
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