Obama’s Nobel speech asserts ‘just war on behalf of peace’

US President Barack Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize speech carried a striking, even unprecedented, defence of just war on behalf of a “just and lasting peace.” Obama argued, “For make no mistake: Evil does exist in the world." This message was probably inevitable given the controversial nature of his award: an American leader hailed for his ambitions for peace and disarmament even as he has added new troops to America’s eight-year-long war in Afghanistan. Obama chose this opportunity to set out an explanation of circumstances where war is justified - for self-defence, to come to the aid of an invaded nation or on humanitarian grounds such as when civilians are slaughtered by their own government. For more, read the AP