Nobel Committee Clarifies Prize Rules as Machado Hands Peace Medal to Donald Trump

Machado was originally named the 2025 laureate in October 2025, recognized for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights” and her commitment to a peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy in Venezuela.

By Rakesh Raman
New Delhi | January 17, 2026

WASHINGTON D.C. — In a rare diplomatic gesture, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado has presented her 2025 Nobel Peace Prize medal to U.S. President Donald Trump during a visit to the White House. The move has prompted an official clarification from the Norwegian Nobel Committee regarding the transferability of the prestigious award.

The White House Exchange

On Thursday, Machado visited the White House to hand-deliver the 18-carat gold medal, which was presented in a golden frame. This gesture follows a public campaign by Trump for the award and Machado’s subsequent dedication of her prize to him. In return for the medal, Trump presented Machado with a maroon “swag bag” featuring his signature in gold.

Machado was originally named the 2025 laureate in October 2025, recognized for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights” and her commitment to a peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy in Venezuela.

“Inseparable” Honors

The Norwegian Nobel Committee responded to the exchange with a formal statement titled, “The Nobel Prize and the Laureate Are Inseparable”. The committee emphasized that while a laureate has the right to keep, sell, or give away the physical medal, the official honor remains with the person to whom it was originally granted.

[ Majority Say Trump Deserves Nobel Peace Prize for Kashmir Peace Effort: RMN News Poll ]

“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 committee stated. They further clarified that the decision to award the prize is “final and applies for all time,” meaning the recognition itself cannot be shared, transferred, or revoked.

A History of Gifting Medals

The physical Nobel Peace Prize medal, designed by Norwegian sculptor Gustav Vigeland, weighs 196 grams and features an inscription in Latin meaning “for peace and the fraternity of nations”.

While Machado’s decision to hand the medal to a sitting U.S. President is highly unusual, the sources note that other laureates have given away or sold their medals in the past. Previous figures who have parted with their physical medals include Kofi Annan, Dmitry Muratov, and James Watson. However, the committee maintains that even in these instances, only the physical object changed hands, not the title of Nobel Laureate.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump, who failed to secure the award last year, continues to actively tout his credentials as a global peacemaker, suggesting he is long overdue for a Nobel Peace Prize. His desire for the award has been a long-standing talking point, with some observers noting his ambition grew after former President Barack Obama received the award in 2009.

During repeated remarks, the President cited “six wars” he had ended. He specifically claimed credit for brokering a ceasefire between India and Pakistan, which followed renewed violence after the Pahalgam terror attack in April 2025.

Trump can hope to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in the coming years if he can end the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan. Kashmir—once called paradise on Earth—has, for decades, become a symbol of unending suffering for its people, particularly for the persecuted Muslim communities who make up the majority of the population in the region.

Following the Pahalgam terror attack, the armed conflict between India and Pakistan once again threatened to plunge South Asia into chaos. But amidst the geopolitical crisis, Trump had stepped forward claiming credit for brokering a ceasefire between the two nuclear powers. He has also suggested that the United States is ready to mediate a resolution to the Kashmir dispute—a long-standing conflict that has left generations of Kashmiris trapped in what many describe as an open-air prison.