Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado arrived in Washington on Thursday to meet with President Donald Trump, as questions remain over the future of Venezuela following the capture of President Nicolás Maduro.
Machado is a former lawmaker and founder of the political movement Vente Venezuela. During her 2024 presidential campaign, she drew large crowds and became a central figure in the opposition movement, according to a White House email sent to the Deseret News. Her outspoken criticism of Maduro earned her the nickname “Iron Lady” among supporters.
Over the past year, Machado has positioned herself as an ally of Trump. Her meeting comes as Trump has recently developed a working relationship with Delcy Rodríguez, the former vice president under Maduro and Venezuela’s current acting president, according to The Wall Street Journal.
In the weeks following the capture of Maduro by the U.S., Trump has praised Rodriguez for her cooperation with the United States. He has said he plans to meet with Rodríguez soon, adding, “She’s been very good.”
Machado’s allies in Washington said they hoped the meeting would strengthen her relationship with Trump.
“I am sure that she will have a very good, long, solid conversation with the president,” Rep. Maria Salazar, R-Fla., said on Sunday, according to The Wall Street Journal. “I’m sure that President Trump is going to be highly, highly pleased with that meeting.”
What will Machado’s role be?
The meeting was expected to focus on the role Venezuela’s opposition could play in the country’s political future. Machado planned to convey the “gratitude of the Venezuelan people for his unwavering support for democracy and justice in the country,” according to her press office. She also intended to ask Trump to “advocate for the release of all political prisoners,” a White House communications shared with the Deseret News said.
As Trump met privately with Machado on Thursday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt briefed the press on other administration matters and fielded questions about the meeting.
Leavitt said the president was looking forward to a positive discussion with Machado, whom she described as ”a brave and powerful voice" for the Venezuelan people
She added the United States has been in constant contact with Venezuela’s interim government and said it has met all U.S. demands so far, including the release of political prisoners — among them five Americans.
Leavitt also credited a $500 million energy deal to cooperation from Rodríguez and the Venezuelan government.
“They have been extremely cooperative. They have thus far met all of the demands and requests of the su and of the president. And I think you have all seen that play out,” Leavitt said. “We obviously had a $500 million energy deal that was struck in large part because of the cooperation from Ms. Rodriguez.”
“The president likes what he’s seeing and we’ll expect that cooperation to continue,” Leavitt added.
When asked what Trump would need to hear from Machado to reconsider his current approach to Venezuela, Leavitt said the president wanted to meet with Machado in-person and have an honest discussion about conditions in the country.
Machado presents Trump with Nobel
Following her meeting at the Capitol with Trump and other U.S. officials, Machado said that she “presented” Trump the Nobel Peace Prize during their meeting, “as a recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom,” she said, as reported by The Associated Press.
She added that the meeting with the president was “great” and that her conversation with a bipartisan group of senators on Capitol Hill was “a great meeting,” as NBC News reported.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee and Norwegian Nobel Institute previously released a statement detailing that the Nobel Prize cannot be “revoked, shared or transferred to others.”
Trump has yet to comment on his meeting with Machado.
Trump and Machado’s relationship
Machado has taken care not to offend Trump. After winning the Nobel Peace Prize, she dedicated the award to both Trump and the Venezuelan people.
In a Jan. 5 interview with Fox News, Machado said she hoped to personally share the prize with Trump.
“I certainly would love to be able to personally tell him that the Venezuelan people want to give it to him and share it with him,” she said.
Trump responded by calling the gesture a “great honor.”
Machado also told Fox News that she last spoke with Trump on Oct. 10, the day the Nobel Peace Prize was announced.