The Nobel Peace Prize remains inseparably linked to the person or organisation designated as the laureate, the Norwegian Nobel Committee said, one day after last year’s winner gave part of her award to US President Donald Trump.
The 2025 laureate, Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, yesterday gave her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Mr Trump, who thanked her for it.
Ms Machado, 58, presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Mr Trump in a bid to win over the US president.
“He deserves it,” she said.
“And it was a very emotional moment, I decided to present the Nobel Peace Prize medal on behalf of the people of Venezuela.”
Ms Machado has previously insisted she will be elected president “when the right time comes” despite the US sidelining her after overthrowing Nicolas Maduro.
President Trump has backed Mr Maduro’s former vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, as interim leader of the oil-rich country following the 3 January US military operation to seize Mr Maduro.
The White House posted a photo of Mr Trump and Ms Machado with the president holding up a large, gold-coloured frame displaying the medal, and a White House official confirmed that the president intends to keep it.
Mr Trump had campaigned hard to win last year’s Nobel Peace Prize for what he says are his efforts to stop eight wars.
Instead, it went to Ms Machado, who appeared in Oslo last month to collect her prize – following a daring escape from Venezuela by boat.
In addition to the gold medal, Ms Machado’s award also consisted of a diploma and 11 million Swedish crowns (€1m)
“Regardless of what may happen to the medal, the diploma, or the prize money, it is and remains the original laureate who is recorded in history as the recipient of the prize,” the award body said in a statement.
“There are no restrictions in the statutes of the Nobel Foundation on what a laureate may do with the medal, the diploma, or the prize money. This means that a laureate is free to keep, give away, sell, or donate these items,” it added.