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Machado Says She Gave Trump Her Nobel Medal as U.S. Tightens Grip on Venezuelan Oil

The Nobel committee’s rules render the handover purely symbolic.

Overview

  • Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado met President Trump for a private White House lunch and said she presented him her 2025 Nobel Peace Prize medal, without confirming whether he accepted it.
  • The Norwegian Nobel Committee reiterated that Nobel prizes cannot be transferred, shared or revoked, confirming that any handover of the medal carries only symbolic weight.
  • White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump still believes Machado lacks sufficient support to lead Venezuela and continues to work with interim leader Delcy Rodríguez.
  • Machado told supporters "we can count on President Trump" and later met a bipartisan group of senators, as lawmakers noted continued repression in Venezuela and questioned prospects for near-term elections.
  • U.S. Southern Command announced the seizure of a sixth Venezuela-linked tanker, the Veronica, and a U.S. official said the first U.S.-brokered Venezuelan oil sale worth about $500 million has been finalized.