Trump speaks with Machado after Nobel peace prize controversy
Former U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that he spoke by phone with 2025 Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado after his administration publicly condemned her award.
The controversy began when the White House reacted sharply to the Nobel Committee’s decision, accusing it of choosing “politics over peace.” Despite that, Trump said Machado called him and said she accepted the Nobel “in honor of you, because you really deserved it. He added with a wry tone that he “did not say, ‘Then give it to me,’ though I think she might have.
Trump has long publicly campaigned for the Nobel Peace Prize, citing his claimed mediation roles in global conflicts. When asked about Machado’s win, he framed it as partly symbolic of her recognition of his efforts.
Machado, a Venezuelan opposition leader, in turn dedicated her Nobel Prize “to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause.
This development adds tension to the international reaction to the Nobel decision. The Trump administration’s early denunciation, followed by a private call with Machado, suggests a balancing act: rejecting the award publicly while privately engaging with the laureate.
