President Donald Trump received the Nobel Peace Prize medal from Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado during an Oval Office meeting, marking an unprecedented moment in the ongoing political crisis involving the South American nation.
Machado, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year for her efforts to establish democracy in Venezuela, presented the medal to Trump during their Thursday meeting at the White House.
The opposition leader stood alongside the president as he held the prize, with both appearing in a photograph from the Oval Office.
The presentation came shortly after United States military forces captured and imprisoned Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, fundamentally altering the political landscape in the region.
“I presented the president of the United States, the medal, the Nobel Peace Prize,” Machado told reporters on Capitol Hill Thursday afternoon.
She explained that she gave Trump the medal due to what she described as his “unique commitment with our freedom.”
Machado drew a historical parallel to justify her decision, referencing how a medal commissioned for President George Washington was presented to the family of Marquis de Lafayette, the French military officer who assisted Americans during the Revolutionary War.
She referred to Trump as the “heir of Washington.”
Trump expressed gratitude on Truth Social, writing: “It was my Great Honor to meet María Corina Machado, of Venezuela, today. She is a wonderful woman who has been through so much. María presented me with her Nobel Peace Prize for the work I have done. Such a wonderful gesture of mutual respect. Thank you María!”
However, the Norwegian Nobel Committee issued a pointed statement Thursday reiterating established rules regarding Nobel Prize awards.
The committee posted that while many prizes “have been passed on” after a winner’s death, they cannot be gifted during the laureate’s lifetime.
“A medal can change owners, but the title of a Nobel Peace Prize laureate cannot,” the committee stated.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee repeated its official ruling from the previous week: “But one truth remains. As the Norwegian Nobel Committee states: Once a Nobel Prize is announced, it cannot be revoked, shared, or transferred to others. The decision is final and stands for all time.”
Despite the committee’s clarification, Machado proceeded with presenting the physical medal to Trump.
The White House did not invite press into the meeting, resulting in no immediate photographs of Trump holding the prize beyond what was later released.
Machado won the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of her commitment to transforming Venezuela into a democracy.
She has been barred from running for office herself but leads the opposition movement against Maduro’s regime.
The United States government has maintained that Maduro did not legitimately win the 2024 election, asserting that a member of Machado’s opposition movement was the rightful victor.
However, Trump has not pushed for complete regime change in Venezuela despite Maduro’s arrest. Instead, the administration has been working with Delcy Rodriguez, Maduro’s second-in-command, who has assumed the role of acting president.
