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Obama 'surprised' by Nobel prize

US president accepts honour as a call to action for nations to confront challenges of the century.

  • Agencies
  • Published: 20:20 October 9, 2009

US President Barack Obama
  • Image Credit: AP

Washington: US President Barack Obama expressed surprise on Friday over winning the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize but said he accepted the honour as a call to action for nations to confront the challenges of the 21st century.

"I am both surprised and deeply humbled by the decision of the Nobel committee," Obama told reporters in the White House Rose Garden.

"I do not view it as a recognition of my own accomplishments but rather as an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations."

The award came to Obama, who has spent less than nine months in office, and has yet to score a major foreign policy success.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee praised Obama for "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples," citing his fledgling push for nuclear disarmament and his outreach to the Muslim world.

Obama has been widely credited with improving America's global image after the eight-year presidency of George W. Bush, who alienated both friends and foes with policies like the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq. 

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