MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Machado says she counts on Trump, but White House backs Delcy Rodríguez

Machado confirmed that she gave Trump her Nobel Peace Prize medal in a symbolic gesture that evoked a historic exchange between Washington and Bolívar 200 years ago. Photo: REUTERS/Kylie Cooper

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado told supporters gathered outside the White House on Thursday that “we count on the president for Venezuela’s freedom” after holding a closed-door meeting lasting more than two hours with US President Donald Trump.

Her remarks contrasted with the official White House line. Earlier in the day, spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said Trump’s view that Machado is “not the right person to lead political change in Venezuela” remains unchanged, calling it a “realistic” assessment. Leavitt added that the president is satisfied with the cooperation shown by Venezuela’s interim leader Delcy Rodríguez, saying that “the president likes what he is seeing and hopes this cooperation continues”.

María Corina Machado saludando a los venezolanos afuera de la Casa Blanca. pic.twitter.com/gnhpAOu1uf

— Emmanuel Rincón (@EmmaRincon) January 15, 2026

Machado handed her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Trump

Speaking to reporters after leaving the US Capitol, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said that during her meeting with President Donald Trump she conveyed the Venezuelan people’s desire to build democratic institutions that guarantee civil liberties and address “the collapse of healthcare and education.” She added that Trump told her “how much he cares” about the situation in Venezuela and that he is “committed to the freedom of all Venezuelans.” In that context, Machado confirmed that she presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to the US president, describing it as a symbolic gesture in which she recalled the delivery, 200 years ago, of a medal bearing George Washington’s image to Simón Bolívar, as a historical act of recognition between the two peoples.

In Caracas, Rodríguez struck a defiant tone, calling the US capture of former president Nicolás Maduro a “kidnapping”. “If I ever have to go to Washington, I will go standing, walking, never crawling,” she told the National Assembly, while acknowledging a “stain” on bilateral relations following the January 3 operation.

Meanwhile, Washington intercepted another oil tanker in the Caribbean and seized its Venezuelan crude cargo, the sixth such action since December, as pressure mounts following the detention of Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. Human rights groups cited by international agencies warned that many recently released detainees in Venezuela are not “fully free”, despite official announcements.