Venezuelan Nobel Peace Prize winner presents her medal to Trump
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado told reporters that she presented the Nobel Peace Prize medal to President Donald Trump in a private meeting at the White House on Thursday, but did not say whether he accepted it.
“I think today is a historic day for us Venezuelans,” she said after meeting with Trump, the first time the two had met in person.
In the weeks after U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in Caracas, Trump refused to support Machado, whose movement claimed victory in the widely contested 2024 election, as the new leader.
Instead, he is dealing with the interim head of state, Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s former vice-president.
After leaving the White House, Machado addressed his supporters gathered outside the exterior gates, telling them in Spanish, according to the Associated Press: “We can count on President Trump.”
“I presented the President of the United States with the Nobel Peace Prize medal,” Machado later told reporters in English, calling it “recognition of his unique commitment to our freedom.”
It is unclear whether Trump accepted the award. Trump, who often speaks of his desire to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, had expressed displeasure when it was awarded to Machado and she decided to accept the honor last year.
The BBC has contacted the White House for comment.
Machado said last week that she would share it with Trump, but the Nobel Committee later clarified that it was not transferable.
“Once a Nobel Prize is announced, it cannot be revoked, shared or transferred to others,” the committee said in a statement last week. “The decision is final and valid forever.”
Asked to respond to Machado’s remarks, the committee referred the BBC to its previous statement.
Before the White House meeting on Thursday, the Nobel Peace Center posted on X that “a medal can change owners, but not the title of a Nobel Peace Prize laureate.”
In his speech, Machado described how the Marquis de Lafayette, who fought in the American War of Independence, presented a medal bearing the image of George Washington to Simon Bolivar, one of the founding fathers of modern Venezuela.
The gift was “a sign of brotherhood” between his country and the United States “in their fight for freedom against tyranny,” Machado said.
“And 200 years of history, the people of Bolivar return to Washington’s heir a medal – in this case a Nobel Peace Prize medal – in recognition of his unique commitment to our freedom,” she said.
Machado also traveled to Congress to meet with U.S. senators during her visit to Washington, where her remarks to reporters were drowned out by supporters chanting “María, Presidente” and waving Venezuelan flags.
Machado was expected to use his time with Trump to try to persuade him that supporting Rodríguez’s interim government was a mistake and that his opposition coalition should be in charge of this transition.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters as the meeting took place Thursday that Machado is “a remarkable and courageous voice for many people in Venezuela” and that Trump “looked forward to this meeting and expected a frank and positive discussion” about the current realities of life in Venezuela.
Trump has previously described Machado as a “freedom fighter” but rejected the idea of appointing her to lead Venezuela after Maduro’s impeachment, arguing she does not have enough domestic support.
Since Maduro’s arrest on January 3, the Trump administration has moved quickly to restructure Venezuela’s oil sector, which was subject to U.S. sanctions. On Wednesday, a US official said the US had completed its first sale of Venezuelan oil, valued at $500m (£373m).
Tankers suspected of carrying sanctioned Venezuelan oil have also been seized by the United States, with American forces saying they were being boarded. a sixth tanker Thursday.
A Venezuelan government envoy is expected to travel to Washington on Thursday to meet with U.S. officials and take the first steps toward reopening the country’s embassy, The New York Times reported.
The envoy is said to be a close ally and friend of Rodríguez, who has been described as “extremely cooperative” by the White House.
Rodríguez delivered the annual Message to the Nation address in Caracas on Thursday, in which she said she was also ready to attend meetings in Washington.
“If I ever have to go to Washington as acting president, I will do it standing, walking and not crawling,” she said, calling on the country to “not be afraid of diplomacy” with the United States.
Trump and Rodríguez also spoke by phone on Wednesday, with Trump later describing his counterpart on social media as “a great person.” Rodríguez, meanwhile, described the call as “productive and courteous” and characterized by “mutual respect.”