Venezuelan opposition leader Machado dedicates Nobel Peace Prize to Trump

María Corina Machado, Venezuelan opposition leader and new winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, dedicated the prize on Friday to President Donald Trump and the “suffering people of Venezuela.”

Machado, a leading figure in the resistance against Venezuela’s ruling party, spoke to X to recognize the honor and congratulate Trump for his support.

“This recognition of the struggle of all Venezuelans is an impetus to conclude our task: to conquer freedom,” Machado said. “We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the people of Latin America and the democratic nations of the world as our main allies to achieve freedom and democracy.

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Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado gestures during a protest ahead of Friday’s inauguration of President Nicolás Maduro for his third term, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 9, 2025. (Maxwell Briceno/Reuters)

She added: “I dedicate this award to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!”

Machado has previously openly expressed support for the Trump administration’s actions against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s regime and the country’s drug trafficking network.

Last month, following reports that a U.S. strike killed 11 suspected Tren de Aragua narcoterrorists transporting drugs from Venezuela, Machado appeared on “Fox & Friends” to discuss Maduro’s leadership, saying it was time for him “to go.”

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U.S. President Donald Trump shakes his fist while waiting to welcome Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House September 29, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

“On behalf of the Venezuelan people, I want to tell you how grateful we are to President Trump and his administration for confronting the tragedy Venezuela is going through,” Machado said at the time. “…Maduro has made Venezuela the greatest threat to U.S. national security and regional stability.”

Trump has also sharply criticized Maduro, and the United States is among many countries that do not recognize the legitimacy of Maduro’s government, according to Reuters.

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A Nobel medal is presented during a ceremony in New York, Tuesday, December 8, 2020. (Angela Weiss/Pool Photo via AP, File)

In last year’s elections, Machado rallied millions of Venezuelans to reject Maduro. She was described as a “courageous and committed champion of peace” by Joergen Watne Frydnes, president of the Norwegian Nobel Committee.

“She is receiving the Nobel Peace Prize for her tireless work for the democratic rights of the Venezuelan people and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy,” Frydnes said.

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Trump was also among the contenders for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize, awarded annually to a person or organization that has made a significant contribution to world peace, following his negotiation of a historic deal between Israel and Hamas.

Rachel Wolf and Elizabeth Pritchett of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.