Norwegian political figures are sharply criticizing Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado after she presented her 2025 Nobel Peace Prize medal to U.S. President Donald Trump during a White House meeting on Thursday as Trump floats imposing tariffs on countries who don't comply with his bid to annex Greenland.
Machado, who won the Peace Prize last year for her efforts toward democratic transition in Venezuela, handed Trump the medal in a symbolic act of appreciation for his role in U.S. support for Venezuelan opposition movements. Trump publicly thanked her on Truth Social, calling the moment "a wonderful gesture of mutual respect."
Norwegian officials were quick to condemn the handover, with leaders across the political spectrum arguing that the Peace Prize is not meant to be used as a political token. "This is, above all, absurd. The Peace Prize cannot be given away," said Kirsti Bergstø, head of Norway's Socialist Left party, arguing that Machado's action shows "a total lack of respect for the award."
Trump has openly lamented that he was not selected by the Norwegian Nobel Committee himself, at times calling Norway "foolish" for not awarding him the distinction. Although Machado physically gave Trump the medal, Norwegian sources and the Nobel Committee itself have stressed that this does not confer Nobel laureate status upon him.
According to the Nobel Foundation's statutes, once awarded, a Peace Prize cannot be revoked, shared, or legally reassigned. The physical medal can change hands, as has happened historically with some laureates' decisions to sell or gift their medals, but the title and official recognition remain tied to the original recipient in perpetuity.
The critical comments from Norway comes as Trump has pushed harder than ever before to annex the island of Greenland, a territory of the Kingdom of Denmark, as part of the United States. The President introduced the idea of imposing tariffs on countries who "don't go along with Greenland," while talking to reporters on Friday.
Ine Eriksen Søreide, incoming leader of Norway's Conservative Party, emphasized that Trump's possession of the medal does not change the official record. "Even though Trump now has the medal, that doesn't mean he has received the Peace Prize," she said, underlining the distinction between owning a physical medal and being recognized as a Nobel laureate.
From the Centre Party, Trygve Slagsvold Vedum went further in his critique of Trump's acceptance of the medal. Vedum said the former U.S. president was playing the role of a "typical character who will adorn himself with others' awards and exploit the labor of others," adding that the optics of the situation undermined the legitimacy of the Nobel honor. Arild Hermstad, leader of the Green Party, used even stronger language, claiming that "Trump is behaving like a mafia boss" in how he accepted and displayed the prize gift.
Trump has also faced criticism regarding his Greenland plans from within his own party. Republican Representative Don Bacon of Nebraska called the Greenland push, "the dumbest thing I've ever heard." Republican Senators Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska are also scheduled to travel to Copenhagen to assure Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen that the U.S. will not take Greenland by force.
