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The White House has criticised the Nobel Committee’s decision to award this year’s Peace Prize to Venezuelan opposition leader and democracy advocate María Machado.
Machado received the honour on Friday for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”
Her selection came after campaigns by supporters of former US President Donald Trump, who argued he deserved the prize for brokering peace deals in conflict zones.
However, the committee’s chair, Jørgen Frydnes, stressed that “we base our decision solely on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel.”
Reacting to the announcement, White House communications director Steven Cheung condemned the committee’s choice, saying:
“President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will. The Nobel Committee has shown it values politics over peace.”
Credit: BBC
In 2009, former US President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize for “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.”
Trump recently claimed Obama “won the award for doing absolutely nothing but destroying our country.”
Meanwhile, global leaders and organisations have praised Machado’s recognition. The UN Human Rights Office said the award reflects Venezuelans’ “clear aspirations for free and fair elections, civil and political rights, and the rule of law.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the honour celebrates Machado’s “courage and every voice that refuses to be silenced,” while Germany’s foreign minister, Johann Wadephul, described her as “a voice for freedom worldwide.”
Machado, 58, who remains in hiding, grew emotional upon receiving the call from the Nobel Committee.
“I am just one person. I certainly do not deserve this,” she said, thanking the committee and calling the award “the achievement of a whole society.”
