Machado promises to return: The Nobel laureate, who had been in hiding in Venezuela, spoke from Norway’s capital Oslo, where she was awarded the Peace Prize a day earlier. She said she received support from the US to get there. She also spoke of her “duty” to return to Venezuela with her award, whether or not Maduro remains in power.
Tanker seized: Machado spoke a day after the US seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, ramping up a campaign that has included moving troops into the Caribbean, strikes on suspected drug boats and threats against its leader. She called US President Donald Trump’s actions “decisive” in weakening Maduro’s regime.
Venezuela's opposition leader says she will bring Nobel Peace Prize back to her country. Catch up her
Maria Corina Machado, the Venezuelan opposition figure and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, attends a press conference in Oslo, Norway, on Thursday.
Maria Corina Machado, the Venezuelan opposition figure and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, attends a press conference in Oslo, Norway, on Thursday. Rune Hellestad/Getty Images
María Corina Machado has held two news conferences in Oslo, Norway, telling journalists that it was her “duty” to receive the prize and take it back to Venezuela.
“We’re going to show the world that we do not only deserve this Nobel Prize, but that this generation will outlast what is going on,” she added.
Machado, who has been in hiding in her home country, also said that she received “support from the United States government” to travel to Norway, declining to elaborate.
“I cannot give details, because these are people that could be harmed,” Machado said of those who aided her travel.
“Certainly, the regime would have done everything to prevent me from coming. They did not know where I was in hiding in Venezuela, so it was hard for them to stop me.”
Asked for her reaction to the US seizure of an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela yesterday, Machado said she supports global actions to cut off sources of revenue flowing to Venezuela’s oppressive government.
“They use those resources to repress and persecute our people,” she said.
Machado added that she believes US President Donald Trump’s actions have been “decisive” in weakening the regime of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
“The regime previously thought that they could do anything, anything. They felt they had absolute impunity,” Machado said. “Now, they start to understand that this is serious and the world is really watching.”
The opposition leader also said that she has received “quite a few invitations” to meetings during her trip to Norway.“I’ll be back in Venezuela, I have no doubt,” she added.
Although the US and Venezuela enjoyed strong relations during the late 20th century, with US companies key investors in Venezuela’s massive oil sector, friction started to develop following the election of leftist leader Hugo Chávez in 1999.
These tensions increased as Chávez tightened his grip on power amid deepening authoritarianism and strong relations with communist Cuba, a sworn enemy of the US, and have deepened under Chávez’ chosen successor Nicolás Maduro.
Since taking over as Venezuelan president in 2013 following Chavez’ death from cancer, Maduro has overseen a further slide into dictatorship, manipulating election results and violently repressing protests as he has fought tooth and nail to stay in power, as well as deepening relationships with Washington’s geopolitical rivals of China, Russia and Iran.
During his first term in office, President Donald Trump used economic sanctions and support for Venezuela’s political opposition to exert pressure on Maduro, who nonetheless has remained in power.
Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has accused Maduro of flooding the US with drugs and criminals. His administration has also designated Venezuelan criminal groups Tren de Aragua and Cartel de los Soles as foreign terrorist organizations in an apparent move to justify military action against the Venezuelan government.
At the same time, Trump envoy Richard Grenell has maintained contact with Venezuelan officials and met with Maduro several times earlier this year, and the US president himself spoke with his Venezuelan counterpart by phone in November.
Despite maintaining diplomatic contact, the US has continued to build its military presence in the Caribbean, conducting military strikes against alleged drug trafficking vessels and threatening to attack cartel infrastructure in Venezuelan territory, and Wednesday’s seizure of an oil tanker carrying Venezuelan crude is the latest escalation in Trump’s campaign to finally remove Maduro from power.
Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro attends a ceremony at Fort Tiuna military in Caracas on January 10. Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has developed a knack for succeeding against the odds, with few predicting his rise to the presidency nor his continued ability to remain in power.
The son of a political activist from a traditional Venezuelan party, Maduro joined the Socialist League as a student and began working as a bus driver for the Caracas Metro.
He then became a union leader before entering the National Assembly when his political mentor Hugo Chávez was elected president in 1999.Maduro rose through the ranks of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), serving as foreign minister and vice president during Chávez’ time in office.
He was one of a raft of potential candidates to take over the presidency as Chávez’ health declined following a cancer diagnosis, but Chávez moved to tamp down internal disputes and picked him as his successor in December 2012.
Since taking over the top job in 2013, Maduro has faced mockery of his eccentric public pronouncements and criticism of his electoral system, as well as a succession of protests, sanctions, arrest warrants, possible rebellions and international isolation.
Venezuela's newly inaugurated President Nicolas Maduro waves during a motorcade after his installation in Caracas, Venezuela, on April 19, 2013.
Venezuela's newly inaugurated President Nicolas Maduro waves during a motorcade after his installation in Caracas, Venezuela, on April 19, 2013. Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty Images
Nonetheless, he has been able to head off crises despite mounting international criticism of his government and the fact that millions of Venezuelans have fled the country amid deepening poverty and political repression.
Excessive force, arbitrary detentions of protesters and opposition leaders, sexual violence, torture and extrajudicial executions are all part of Maduro’s toolkit for managing dissent, according to UN reports.
Now, however, Maduro appears to be facing his toughest moment yet, with President Donald Trump ratcheting up the pressure on his government and opposition leader María Corina Machado, who was named this year’s winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, attempting to drum up international support for a change in government.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado, center, sits next to Kristian Berg Harpviken, left, secretary of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, and Jørgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, during a news conference at the Grand Hotel in Oslo, Norway, on Thursday.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado, center, sits next to Kristian Berg Harpviken, left, secretary of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, and Jørgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, during a news conference at the Grand Hotel in Oslo, Norway, on Thursday. Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty Images
María Corina Machado said she doesn’t yet have plans to visit other European capitals or the United States, but the Venezuelan opposition leader said has received “quite a few invitations” during her time so far in Norway.
“To be absolutely honest, I’m taking one day at a time,” Machado told reporters at a news conference in Oslo, where she arrived late last night. “There was great uncertainty if I was able to come, so I had not made many plans.”
“Now that I’m here, I certainly want to spend a few hours with my colleagues, friends and my children,” she said, adding that she also has some doctors’ appointments and meetings to attend after being in hiding for the last 15 months.
“There are some meetings that I believe could be very useful that I do before I go back home,” Machado said.
Machado narrowly missed the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony yesterday, and instead her daughter accepted the award on her behalf.
“I’ll be back in Venezuela, I have no doubt,” Machado also said during the news conference.