Trump and María Corina Machado sparked controversy after the president claimed he received the Nobel Peace Prize from her.

• Trump Claims Nobel and Sparks Controversy
• Meeting With Machado
• Controversy Over the Prize

According to the EFE news agency, U.S. President Donald Trump stated this Thursday that Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado “gifted” him her Nobel Peace Prize medal during a private meeting at the White House.

Trump posted on his official Truth Social account that it was “a great honor” to meet Machado and that she gave him the award due to the “work” he has carried out during his administration.

The president added that Machado is “a wonderful woman who has been through so much” and described the delivery of the medal as a “wonderful gesture of mutual respect.”

Machado, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2025 for her work promoting democratic rights in Venezuela, told the press that she presented the medal to Trump after their meeting in Washington.

Delivery of the Nobel Peace Prize at the White House

🚨#Breaking In a post on his official Truth Social account, Donald Trump said it was “a great honor” to meet Machado and that she “gifted” him her Nobel Peace Prize due to the “work” he has done during his administration
https://t.co/nElXMcHs1p pic.twitter.com/bKPvtKdBJT

— El Universal (@El_Universal_Mx) January 16, 2026

According to statements made after the meeting, Machado explained that she handed the Nobel Peace Prize medal to the U.S. president as a symbol of recognition.

The gesture took place during her visit to the White House, 12 days after U.S. military forces carried out a mission in Caracas to overthrow President Nicolás Maduro, who is currently being held in a prison in New York on drug trafficking charges.

Machado told the media that she presented the Nobel Peace Prize medal to Trump, highlighting his role in the fight for Venezuela’s freedom.

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN: Outrage Grows! U.S. Used Civilian-Looking Aircraft in First Attack on Narco Boats, NYT Says

Prior to this week’s meeting, the Nobel organization had posted on its X account that the prize is non-transferable, meaning the recognition cannot change hands even if the physical medal is given as a symbolic gesture.

Trump described the delivery as an act filled with mutual respect and again highlighted Machado as an extraordinary woman who has faced great challenges.

Reactions and International Context

Although Trump claimed he received the Nobel “as a gift” from Machado, the Nobel Prize organization had already clarified that the recognition cannot be shared or officially transferred.

According to the committee’s statement, the medal remains the symbolic property of the awarded individual, and any act of giving it is purely honorary and does not change ownership of the prize.

Machado was awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the Venezuelan people and her fight for a peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.

Machado’s gesture, interpreted as a sign of recognition toward Trump, occurred amid a complex relationship between the United States and Venezuela following the capture of former president Maduro—an episode that has generated diplomatic and political tensions in the region.

Trump said the meeting and the delivery of the medal were “a wonderful gesture” and represent mutual respect between both leaders.

Machado, for her part, stated that presenting the Nobel Peace Prize to Trump represents a symbol of unity for Venezuelans fighting for freedom.

The political meaning of this gesture remains under debate, as the Nobel committee has reiterated that the prize cannot formally change hands, limiting any official interpretation beyond the symbolic.

The meeting between Trump and Machado, as well as the delivery of the medal, takes place at a key moment in hemispheric politics, with expectations surrounding Venezuela’s future and the influence of the United States on the country’s political transition.

The White House has not issued an official statement on the legal validity of the medal’s delivery beyond Trump’s public remarks.