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13-01-2026
PALM BEACH, FLORID: The Norwegian Nobel Institute on Friday clarified the rules regarding the Nobel Prize amid recent suggestions by Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado that she would share her award with President Trump.
The prize cannot be “revoked, shared, or transferred to others” once announced, the institute said in a statement.
“The decision is final and stands for all time,” the statement concluded.
Machado has floated the idea of giving the Peace Prize she won last October to Trump in the wake of US intervention in Venezuela, including the recent capture of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife to face narcoterrorism charges.
“I certainly would love to be able to personally tell him that we believe, the Venezuelan people, because this is a prize of the Venezuelan people, want to give it to him and share it with him,” Machado said Tuesday on Fox News’s “Hannity.”
Trump chimed in on the same program on Thursday, saying it would be a “great honor” to accept the award and that he was looking forward to meeting with Machado during a scheduled visit in Washington next week.
Machado, a former National Assembly member, won the opposition primary in 2023 but was barred from running against Maduro in the general election and backed another candidate. Maduro declared victory in the election despite reports of irregularities by independent observers.
As Maduro’s crackdown on protesters and the opposition party intensified, Machado remained in hiding for more than a year before reappearing in public in Norway last month, where her daughter accepted the Peace Prize on her behalf.
In announcing Machado as the winner, the Norwegian Nobel Committee described her as “one of the most extraordinary examples of civilian courage in Latin America in recent times” and praised her “tireless” work in promoting democracy.
Machado told Hannity she planned to return to Venezuela “as soon as possible,” though Trump has said she does not have enough support or respect to lead the country.
Instead, the US has backed Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s close ally and vice president, as acting president. Still, Trump and other senior officials have maintained that the US will “run” the South American country for some time.
In a statement, the institute said the decision to award a Nobel Prize is final and permanent, citing the statutes of the Nobel Foundation, which do not allow appeals. The organization also noted that committees awarding the prizes do not comment on the actions or statements of laureates after receiving awards.
“Once a Nobel Prize is announced, it cannot be revoked, shared or transferred to others,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee and the Norwegian Nobel Institute said on Friday. “The decision is final and stands for all time.”
On Monday, Machado, speaking to Sean Hannity on Fox News, said that presenting the prize to Trump would be an act of gratitude from the Venezuelan people for the removal of Nicolas Maduro, the country’s president, who was captured last week by the United States.
“Did you at any point offer to give him the Nobel Peace Prize?” Hannity asked. “Did that actually happen?”
She responded, “Well, it hasn’t happened yet.”
Trump, who has long expressed interest in winning the prize and has at times linked it to diplomatic achievements, said he would be honored to accept the prize if offered by Machado during a planned meeting in Washington next week.
Machado, a former National Assembly member, was barred from running in Venezuela’s 2024 general election by authorities aligned with Maduro. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
