Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado confirmed Thursday that she presented President Trump with her Nobel Peace Prize during a White House meeting.
“I presented the president of the United States the medal, the Nobel Peace Prize,” Machado told reporters on Capitol Hill.
A photo obtained by The Post showed Trump posing with the medal encased in a frame, with Machado standing by his side in the Oval Office
The inscription read: “To President Donald J. Trump. In gratitude for your extraordinary leadership in promoting peace through strength, advancing diplomacy, and defending liberty and prosperity.”
It continued, “Presented as a personal symbol of gratitude on behalf of the Venezuelan people in recognition of President Trump’s principled and decisive action to secure a free Venezuela.”
“The courage of America, and its President Donald J. Trump, will never be forgotten by the Venezuelan people. “
The president thanked Machado for the “wonderful gesture” in a social media post.
“It was my Great Honor to meet María Corina Machado, of Venezuela, today,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “She is a wonderful woman who has been through so much.
“María presented me with her Nobel Peace Prize for the work I have done. Such a wonderful gesture of mutual respect. Thank you María!”
Machado, who won the prestigious award last October for her tireless fight to restore freedom in Venezuela and defeat the authoritarian regime of Nicolás Maduro, explained that she also had a message for Trump when she gave him the prize.
“I told him this: 200 years ago, Gen. [Marquis de] Lafayette gave Simon Bolivar a medal with George Washington’s face on it. Bolivar kept that medal the rest of his life,” Machado said.
“It was given by Gen. Lafayette as a sign of the brotherhood between the people of the US and the people of Venezuela in their fight against tyranny. 200 years on in history, the people of Bolivar are giving back to the heir of George Washington a medal, in this case a medal of the Nobel Peace Prize,” she continued.
Venezuela’s “Iron Lady” added that she presented Trump with the prize “in recognition of his unique place with our freedom.”
The commander-in-chief hosted Machado at the White House earlier Thursday for a private lunch.
The Venezuelan opposition leader spent about two and half hours at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Trump, who had been openly campaigning for the award and received several nominations for it himself, told Fox News host Sean Hannity last week that it would be a “great honor” if Machado were to present him with her prize.
Machado had previously expressed a willingness to give or share the award with Trump.
Trump, who expressed doubt over Machado’s ability to lead Venezuela after the capture of Maduro, has backed interim president Delcy Rodríguez. He called Maduro’s former vice president a “terrific person” after speaking with Rodriguez by phone on Wednesday.
