Venezuelan opposition leader and pro-democracy activist, Maria Corina Machado, has been named the winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, announced Friday by the Norwegian Nobel Committee in Oslo.
Committee Chair, Jørgen Watne Frydnes, said Machado was honoured “for her tireless work in promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and her courageous efforts to achieve a peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”
Frydnes described her as “a unifying figure in a once-fractured opposition movement,” commending her resilience amid Venezuela’s worsening political, economic, and humanitarian crises. He called her “one of the most extraordinary examples of civilian courage in Latin America in recent times.”
Machado, who has reportedly lived in hiding due to threats against her life, “chose to remain in Venezuela — a decision that has inspired millions,” Frydnes said.
Trump’s Absence from the List
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump — who has long claimed he “deserves” a Nobel Prize for his peace efforts — was left off the shortlist this year. Analysts in Oslo said his “America First” foreign policy contradicts the principles of global peace and cooperation outlined in Alfred Nobel’s 1895 will.
When asked about the exclusion, Frydnes responded carefully but firmly. “We receive thousands of letters every year from people saying what, for them, leads to peace,” he said. “This committee sits in a room filled with portraits of laureates — filled with both courage and integrity. We base our decisions only on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel.”
His remarks subtly dismissed claims from Trump’s supporters that the committee ignored his recent peace-brokering efforts in the Middle East.
Despite a push from Trump’s allies, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who posted an AI-generated image of Trump wearing a Nobel medal with the caption “Give @realDonaldTrump the Nobel Peace Prize — he deserves it!”, the committee stood by its earlier decision.
Background and Award Details
The 2025 Peace Prize comes with a gold medal, a diploma, and a cash award of $1.2 million, to be formally presented in Oslo on December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death in 1896.
Last year’s award went to Nihon Hidankyo, a Japanese group of Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bomb survivors campaigning against nuclear weapons.
This year’s selection of Machado reaffirms the committee’s focus on human rights, democracy, and nonviolent resistance — a message in an era when authoritarianism continues to rise globally.
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