Venezuela Opposition Leader Gifts Her Nobel Peace Prize Medal To Trump

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado has made a dramatic gesture during a visit to Washington, presenting her Nobel Peace Prize medal to President Donald Trump at the White House. She described the move as symbolic, saying it was meant to honor what she sees as Trump’s role in pushing Venezuela toward freedom.

After the meeting, Machado told reporters, “I presented the president of the United States the medal of the Nobel Peace Prize,” calling it “a recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom”. Speaking later to supporters gathered outside the White House gates, she added in Spanish: “We can count on President Trump.”

Trump welcomed the gift publicly, posting that it was “a wonderful gesture of mutual respect”. Photos released by the White House showed the medal displayed in a large frame alongside a message praising Trump’s actions toward a “free Venezuela”.

The Nobel Committee quickly clarified that while a medal can be handed over, the prize itself cannot. In a statement posted earlier, organizers said: “Once a Nobel Prize is announced, it cannot be revoked, shared, or transferred to others,” and reiterated online that “a medal can change owners, but the title of a Nobel Peace Prize laureate cannot”.

Machado’s visit came just weeks after US forces seized Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in Caracas and charged him in a US drug-trafficking case. Many of her supporters had hoped Trump would back her as Venezuela’s new leader following Maduro’s removal, especially after her movement claimed victory in the country’s disputed 2024 election.

Instead, Trump has chosen to work with Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s former vice-president, who has been sworn in as acting president. He has praised Rodríguez as “a terrific person” and said she was willing to do what was needed to stabilize the country. The White House has argued that this approach reflects “realities on the ground”, including concerns about security and the need to keep state institutions functioning.

That calculation is closely tied to oil. Since Maduro’s capture, the Trump administration has moved fast to reshape Venezuela’s energy sector, completing a $500m sale of Venezuelan oil and seizing tankers suspected of violating sanctions. For critics, this has reinforced the view that Washington’s priority is stability and access to resources rather than an immediate political overhaul.

Machado, however, is betting that symbolism and pressure can still shift US policy. She has framed her decision to give away the medal as part of a longer historical arc, comparing it to a 19th-century exchange of medals between figures from the American and Latin American independence movements. In her telling, the gesture is about “the brotherhood” between the two nations in a shared fight “against tyranny”.

Her Washington trip drew enthusiastic scenes among Venezuelan exiles, who waved flags and chanted “María, presidente” as she met lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Allies say she was not seeking a personal endorsement but trying to keep the focus on democratic elections. As one opposition figure put it, “What we are aiming is to have a democratic transition in which the people of Venezuela are the ones that will decide through their votes who is the one that is going to govern us.”

For now, Trump has lowered expectations of quick elections, arguing the country needs fixing first. Rodríguez, meanwhile, has signaled she is open to talks with Washington, saying she would travel there “standing tall, walking, and not crawling,” even as she condemned the US operation that removed Maduro.

Machado’s gamble has not yet changed Trump’s stance. But by giving up her most prestigious symbol, she has made clear how far she is willing to go to keep her cause — and Venezuela’s future — on the US president’s agenda.