Venezuela’s Machado Gave President Donald Trump Her Nobel Prize and Left With Little Political Assurance
Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado met with President Donald Trump at the White House, presenting him with her Nobel medal as a symbolic gesture of gratitude for U.S. actions against Nicolás Maduro’s regime. While Trump publicly praised the exchange, the Nobel Committee clarified that the honor itself cannot be transferred. The meeting produced no clear policy commitments from Washington, underscoring ongoing uncertainty over Venezuela’s political transition and U.S. involvement.
When Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado walked into the Oval Office on Thursday, she brought with her a powerful symbol of moral authority: her Nobel Peace Prize medal. Awarded last year for her advocacy for democracy in Venezuela, the prize was originally given to U.S. President Donald Trump as a gesture of appreciation and, implicitly, a request for political support.
But what Machado left with seemed limited to a Trump-branded swag bag, a photo op, and no clear shift in U.S. policy regarding Venezuela's political future.
White House photographs showed Trump showing off Machado's medal contained in a gold-framed plaque and included a dedication to his "principled and decisive action" in securing a free Venezuela. Trump later tweeted on Truth Social that this exchange was a "wonderful gesture of mutual respect."
However, the Oslo-based Nobel Peace Center quickly clarified that the medal can be exchanged, but the title Nobel laureate cannot be transferred.
Machado, who has been critical of Nicolás Maduro during his years as a dictator in Venezuela, called their meeting "historic" and "extraordinary," adding that the Trump administration recognized the necessity of rebuilding democratic institutions, protecting human rights, and establishing a free Venezuela.