At a Glance
- Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado says she handed President Donald Trump her 2025 Nobel Peace Prize at the White House on Jan. 15, 2026.
- The Nobel Committee warned five days earlier that the award “cannot be revoked, shared, or transferred.”
- White House has not confirmed whether Trump accepted the medal.
- Why it matters: The move intensifies debate over U.S. influence on Venezuela’s political future after the recent capture of President Nicolás Maduro.
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado walked out of the White House on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, and told Fox News she had just presented President Donald Trump with her 2025 Nobel Peace Prize. The gesture came despite a Jan. 9 statement from the Nobel Committee stressing that Nobel honors “cannot be revoked, shared, or transferred to others.”
The Presentation
Closed-door talks between Trump and Machado lasted less than an hour. Afterward, Machado told Fox News cameras: “I presented the President of the United States the medal, the peace, the Nobel Peace Prize.” She added the gift was “in recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom.”
The White House has not clarified whether Trump physically accepted the medal or merely viewed it. Journalists spotted Machado carrying a small presentation box as she entered the West Wing.
Nobel Pushback
The Norwegian Nobel Committee released a rare public reminder on Jan. 9, 2026, one day after Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that receiving the prize from Machado would be “a great honor.”
- Once announced, a Nobel Peace Prize “cannot be revoked, shared, or transferred to others.”
- “The decision is final and stands for all time,” the committee emphasized.
- The statement did not name Trump or Machado directly but referenced “a number of requests for comments regarding the permanence of a Nobel Peace Prize laureate’s status.”
Why Machado Won
Machado, 58, received the 2025 award for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela” and her struggle to achieve “a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”
She had previously said she would dedicate the medal to Trump, arguing he had advanced peace by negotiating solutions to “unendable wars.”
Political Fallout in Caracas
The prize presentation lands amid turmoil in Venezuela. Early on Jan. 3, 2026, U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Washington is now weighing who should lead the country.
According to a Jan. 4 Washington Post report:
- Accepting the Nobel medal was viewed inside the White House as Machado’s “ultimate sin.”
- A White House source claimed, “If she had turned it down and said, ‘I can’t accept it because it’s Donald Trump’s,’ she’d be the president of Venezuela today.”
- Trump himself told reporters Jan. 4 that Machado “doesn’t have the support or the respect within the country” to govern.
Next Steps
Neither the Nobel Committee nor the White House has indicated what formal action, if any, will follow Machado’s decision to hand over the medal. The committee’s Jan. 9 statement reiterated that laureates remain laureates regardless of physical possession of the medal.
Key Takeaways
- Machado’s on-camera statement confirms she physically gave Trump the Nobel Peace Prize medal.
- The Nobel Committee says titles cannot be transferred, so Machado retains laureate status.
- Trump has not publicly responded since the meeting.
- The episode underscores U.S. leverage over Venezuela’s political transition.
