The Norwegian Nobel Institute said that a Nobel Peace Prize cannot be transferred or shared with another person, responding to comments by Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who said she wanted to "share" her 2025 Nobel Peace Prize with U.S. President Donald Trump.
"A Nobel Prize cannot be revoked nor transferred to others. Once the laureate or laureates are announced, the decision is final," said Erik Aasheim, a spokesperson for the Norwegian Nobel Institute, which serves as the secretariat for the Norwegian Nobel Committee. Aasheim added that while the prize itself is not transferable, laureates are free to dispose of the prize money as they see fit.
The statement followed remarks by Machado during a Fox News interview on Monday, in which she praised Trump's actions that led to the capture of Venezuela's former president, Nicolás Maduro, and said that "because this is the prize of the Venezuelan people, certainly we want to give it to him and share it with him." Machado said she had not spoken directly with Trump since October, when she dedicated the award to him after it was announced.
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Machado's comments came as she seeks U.S. backing for a transition in Venezuela after Maduro's detention. Trump has declined to support Machado as a successor and has instead signaled conditional backing for interim leader Delcy Rodríguez. Trump said over the weekend that Machado "doesn't have the support within, or the respect within, the country," while U.S. officials have argued that immediate backing of the opposition could further destabilize Venezuela.
According to The Washington Post, Machado's decision to accept the Nobel Peace Prize—an honor Trump has long sought—may have contributed to her loss of support from the U.S. president. One person close to the White House told the newspaper that accepting the prize was an "ultimate sin," adding that, had she turned down the award, she "would be the president of Venezuela today."
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