China awarded its own take on the Nobel Prize, the Confucius Peace Prize, on former Cuban president Fidel Castro.

The state news daily, The Global Times, reported the 88-year-old Castro was picked for the prize because he peacefully handled international disputes, especially against Cuba's northern neighbor, the United States.

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The paper added Castro made key contributions to getting rid of nuclear weapons before he stepped down from Cuba's presidency six years ago.

Named after China's famous ancient philosopher, the prize came into existence as an alternative to the Sweden-based Nobel Peace Prize, which Beijing views as anti-China.

Among the winners in previous years of the Confucius Prize, which was started in 2010 after the Nobel Peace Prize was handed to Chinese activist Liu Xiaobo, are former Taiwanese leader Lien Chan and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Global Times reported U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and South Korean President Park Geun-hye were considered for the prize.

The award to Castro was announced a day before the Nobel Peace Prize was given on Wednesday to Pakistan's Malala Yousafzai and Kailesh Satyarthi. 

Although Cuba has been out of the spotlight in recent years, the island nation's foreign policy during the Cold War when the strongman was president, included sending troops to Ethiopia, Mozambique and Angola to quell conflicts in those countries.

But after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Havana's closest ally and donor, Cuba went through times of austerity, known as the "special period," both at home and abroad.

Cuba has been criticized for its human rights record.

Like past winners, Castro did not receive the personally during awarding ceremonies on Tuesday. A Cuban student in China received the prize, a statuette and certificate, on Castro's behalf.

A spokesman for Putin, who was awarded the prize in 2011, told reporters at the time: "We have only heard about the award from the press. We do not know much about the prize."