Venezuelan Maria Corina Machado Gets The Peace Prize Trump Wanted

OSLO – More attention than usual was paid to the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize this year, largely because of President Donald Trump and his high-profile pursuit of the honor. Trump had been openly campaigning for the award, claiming credit for resolving multiple international conflicts and asserting that he deserved the recognition. His push for the prize drew intense media scrutiny and kept global eyes on Oslo in the weeks leading up to the announcement.

Ultimately, the prestigious award went to Venezuela’s Maria Corina Machado, not Trump. Machado was recognized as a steadfast supporter of democracy and a tireless advocate for the Venezuelan people’s rights.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee praised her as “a brave and committed champion of peace” who has kept “the flame of democracy burning amid a growing darkness.” Machado has been a unifying figure in Venezuela’s democracy movement, demonstrating that the tools of democracy can also be instruments of peace. She embodies the hope for a future in which citizens’ fundamental rights are protected, and their voices are heard.

“The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize to Maria Corina Machado for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy,” the committee said.

The prize this year attracted 338 nominations, with 244 individuals and 94 organizations in contention.

Trump’s bid for the Nobel had been fueled by multiple nominations from countries including Israel, Russia, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Thailand, Armenia, and Cambodia, crediting him with mediating protracted conflicts. Trump had publicly claimed to be the first leader “in history” to have “solved eight wars in a period of nine months,” including the India-Pakistan conflict—claims India staunchly denies and analysts feel might have paid the price for, particularly given the economic retaliations that followed.

Reports suggest Norway had braced for the announcement, anticipating Trump’s likely reaction. The  president had counted on breakthroughs in Ukraine and Gaza to bolster his case, but high-profile efforts, including the failed summit  with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, did not yield hoped for results.

Meanwhile, the Nobel Committee reaffirmed its independence, emphasizing that the award recognized genuine, courageous efforts to promote peace—qualities Machado, it felt, exemplifies. (IANS)