Venezuela’s Machado says she presented Nobel Peace Prize to Trump

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said on Thursday that she presented President Donald Trump with the Nobel Peace Prize she won last year, despite his doubts about her ability to replace ousted President Nicolás Maduro.

Machado told reporters that she attempted to gift Trump the medal during a meeting at the White House, describing the gesture as a recognition of “his unique commitment [to] our freedom.” It remains unclear whether the president accepted the medal. The Nobel Institute clarified that Machado could not legally transfer her prize to Trump, who had reportedly coveted the honor before it was awarded to her in October.

If Trump did accept the gift, the Nobel Peace Center would only recognize it as a symbolic gesture. “Once a Nobel Prize is announced, it cannot be revoked, shared or transferred to others. The decision is final and stands for all time,” the organization stated on Thursday.

This, however, may not concern Trump. After his supporters argued that he deserved a Nobel Peace Prize, international soccer organizers presented him with a FIFA Peace Prize—a trophy that did not previously exist. The president called that award “truly one of the great honors of my life.”

In addition to the FIFA Peace Prize, Trump has a New England Patriots Super Bowl ring and the Chelsea soccer team’s 2025 Club World Cup trophy, according to The Guardian. Politico reported that in 2016, a wounded Iraq war veteran also offered Trump his Purple Heart award. Trump remarked at the time, “I always wanted to get the Purple Heart. This was much easier.”

Machado’s offer came during a closed-door meeting with Trump to discuss the situation in Venezuela and the country’s future following the U.S. military-led operation that removed Maduro from office on January 3. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were flown to New York to face narcoterrorism charges brought by the Justice Department. They are currently awaiting trial at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center.

Who will lead Venezuela next remains uncertain, as does Machado’s role in the nation’s politics. Just hours after Maduro’s capture, Trump expressed skepticism about Machado’s leadership prospects, stating it would be “very tough for her to be the leader” because she “doesn’t have the support or respect within the country,” despite her party widely believed to have won the 2024 elections rejected by Maduro.

Following Thursday’s meeting, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt described Machado as “a remarkable and brave voice,” but indicated that Trump’s opinion had not changed. Leavitt told reporters that Trump supports new Venezuelan elections “when the time is right,” though she did not specify when that might be.

Recently, Trump claimed he is in charge of Venezuela but also praised the abilities of the country’s interim leader. Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s former second-in-command, has been serving as acting president, overseeing day-to-day government operations along with others in Maduro’s inner circle.
https://www.nydailynews.com/2026/01/15/machado-nobel-peace-prize-trump/

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