US President Donald Trump meets with Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado
Venezuela's Machado has ‘no regrets’ gifting Nobel Peace Prize to Trump
Note: AI technology was used to generate this article’s audio.
- Maria Machado is actively working with the US government to organize her return and push for a democratic transition.
- Following Maduro's capture, Machado is calling for new presidential elections, though Machado has not yet confirmed if she will run.
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado stated on Saturday, "Consequently, I have no regrets" about her decision to symbolically hand over her Nobel Peace Prize to US President Donald Trump earlier this year, framing the gesture as an act of immense gratitude.
Speaking at a news conference in Madrid, Machado defended her January meeting at the White House, which occurred just two weeks after Trump ordered a US military raid on Caracas to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
Machado told reporters, "There is a leader in the world, a head of state in the world who risked the lives of his country's citizens for Venezuela's freedom".
Trump's military operation to snatch Maduro "is something we Venezuelans will never forget," she added.
Read more: US bombs Venezuela and captures Maduro, according to Trump
Nobel Committee's stance and Trump's current wars
Trump, who has long expressed a desire for the Nobel Peace Prize, accepted the 2025 medal from Machado against a backdrop of escalating global conflict.
Following the highly publicized handover, the Norwegian Nobel Committee, which awards the prestigious prize, had to issue a clarification.
The committee explicitly stated that while the physical medal was gifted, the actual honor the prize represents "cannot be revoked, shared, or transferred to others."
Plotting a return with Washington's backing
Machado, who had been in hiding before traveling to Oslo in December to collect her award, is now actively organizing her return to Venezuela. She confirmed that her homecoming is being carefully coordinated with US officials.
She said, "I am speaking with the US government, and we are working in coordination, with mutual respect and understanding", noting her belief that Washington remains "key to advancing a democratic transition" in the South American nation.
The political landscape in Venezuela is shifting rapidly in the wake of Maduro's capture. With Maduro currently detained in New York facing US drug trafficking charges, the Venezuelan opposition issued a formal call last week for new presidential elections.
Machado herself was controversially banned from running in the 2024 election, which saw Maduro claim a heavily disputed reelection victory. She has not yet announced whether she intends to run in a future poll.
