Trump Meets Venezuelan Opposition Leader Machado Amid Shifting U.S.-Venezuela Relations

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado met U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on January 15, 2026, marking their first in-person meeting since a U.S. military operation captured former President Nicolás Maduro. Machado presented Trump with her Nobel Peace Prize medal as a gesture of gratitude, though the Nobel Committee states the award cannot be transferred. Despite Machado's efforts, Trump has expressed doubts about her domestic support and has signaled willingness to work with interim President Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro's former vice president, who is pursuing oil reforms and diplomatic engagement with the U.S. Machado seeks a role in Venezuela's future governance amid ongoing political tensions and U.S. strategic interests in the country's oil resources.