One day after defying Nicolas Maduro’s regime by coming out of hiding and arriving in Norway, María Corina Machado declared this Thursday (11) that she would do “everything possible” to return to Venezuela with the Nobel Peace Prize.
“I came to receive this award on behalf of the Venezuelan people and I will bring it back to Venezuela at the appropriate time,” the 58-year-old opponent told journalists in Oslo.
“I won’t say when or how it will happen, but I will do everything possible to be able to come back and also end this tyranny very soon,” he said, adding that he had “a lot of hope” that Venezuela would soon be free.
“We will transform the country into a place of hope, an opportunity for democracy. And we will welcome not only Venezuelans who have been forced to flee, but also citizens from around the world.”
María Corina, who was accompanied by the Norwegian Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Store, also thanked the “men and women who risked their lives” so that she could travel, after more than a year in hiding. “I look forward to the day when we (can) welcome you all to an enlightened, democratic and free country – and it will be soon,” he said.
The Venezuelan opponent had planned to arrive on Wednesday morning (10) in the Norwegian capital for the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony, but she had to be represented by her daughter Ana Corina Sosa Machado due to travel delays.
On Wednesday evening, early Thursday morning in Norway, María Corina greeted the public in front of the Grand Hotel, the usual place of accommodation for Nobel Prize winners in the Norwegian capital. The opponent appeared on the central balcony of the building, sang the Venezuelan anthem and saluted “Long live Venezuela!” Moments later, he left the hotel and greeted supporters in the street.
The opponent appeared on the central balcony of the building, sang the Venezuelan anthem and saluted “Long live Venezuela!” Moments later, he left the hotel and greeted supporters in the street.
The whereabouts of the opposition leader have been unknown since January. The Venezuelan dictatorship formally prohibited him from leaving the country. This Thursday, María Corina fulfills a series of agendas, including a visit to Parliament.
She received the Nobel Peace Prize on October 10 “for her tireless work in favor of the democratic rights of the Venezuelan people and for her fight for a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy” in the country, according to the organization.
The opponent remains close to sectors aligned with United States President Donald Trump, who accuse Maduro of being involved in criminal organizations that would pose a direct threat to American national security – a position questioned by some sectors of Washington’s intelligence. After receiving the award announcement in October, she dedicated part of the recognition to Trump.
The award ceremony also takes place against a backdrop of escalating military tensions between Venezuela and the United States. US armed forces captured an oil tanker in the waters off the coast of the South American country on Wednesday.
According to the American press, it is the Skipper tanker flying the Guyanese flag. Tracking platforms indicate that the ship’s final voyage was from the port of Basra, Iraq, to Georgetown, the Guyanese capital.
Venezuela, which has the largest oil reserves in the world, has an economy dependent on exports of this commodity.
In response, Maduro said in a statement that Venezuela “demands an end to the brutal and illegal intervention of the United States” in the country. Asked what would happen to the ship and its cargo of Venezuelan oil, Trump replied: “I think it will stay with us.”
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