THE Nobel committee's choice of Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo of Dili and Mr Jose Ramos Horta for this year's peace prize was praised by the Vatican as well as by Portugal and by Australia, whose relations with Indonesia have been bedeviled by abuses of human rights on the island.
However, an Indonesian government official in Jakarta said he was "shocked and surprised".
The White House praised "all those" who seek to bring peace to East Timor. "The subject of human rights in East Timor has long been a concern of the United States. We've raised this frequently in our meetings with the government of Indonesia," President Clinton's spokesman, Mr Michael McCurry, said.
"We've been particularly concerned about the outbreak of violence there. Bishop Belo is, of course, a well known peace activist, human rights activist, and all those who attempt to bring a calmer atmosphere to East Timor and bring respect for fundamental human rights are to be congratulated," he added.
However, Mr McCurry defended the US record of providing weapons to Indonesia, saying this helped "advance US strategic interests in the region".
Mr McCurry also rejected allegations of any impropriety in the Democratic Party's acceptance of large campaign contributions from individuals associated with the Indonesian Lippo Group, headed by the Riady family.
This family is a prominent family in Little Rock, the capital of Arkansas where Mr Clinton was governor before being elected resident, Mr McCurry said.
Norway said it was prepared to host UN sponsored talks between the Indonesian government and Timorese pro independence forces.
The Norwegian Foreign Minister, Mr Bjoern Tore Godal, said his government "offered its services to set up meetings" along with other unnamed countries.
The Australian Foreign Minister, Mr Alexander Downer, welcomed the choice, saying: "We congratulate the Nobel laureates with whom we share the desire for a peaceful East Timor."
At the Vatican, a spokesman for Bishop Belo's Salesian order said: "The Nobel prize will be an important support for the work the entire Timor Catholic Church and its bishop are contributing towards an oppressed minority."
In Lisbon, President Jorge Sampaio of Portugal was swift to congratulate the prize winners. "It is a reward for those who have held an untiring position in favour of the human rights, peace and self determination of East Timor," he said.
Amnesty International also hailed the award, saying it would "really bring East Timor back into the international spotlight . . . The human rights situation in East Timor remains extremely grave. Arbitrary detention and torture are a fact of daily life."