The US government, under President Donald Trump, has ironically enough blocked opposition leader María Corina Machado from returning to earthquake-devastated Venezuela, even describing her efforts as an attempted political “coup.” This development highlights the unpredictable nature of Venezuelan politics in mid-2026.

Machado, a leading Venezuelan opposition figure, won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize amid controversy and later symbolically gave it to Trump. She has a long record of anti-Chavista activism, including involvement in the 2002 coup attempt against Hugo Chavez. Disqualified from the 2024 presidential race, she lived in hiding, fled Venezuela in late 2025 to accept the Nobel, and vowed in October 2025 to privatize the country’s oil sector, promising American corporations would “make a lot of money.” She was long seen as Washington’s preferred choice to force a “transition” in Caracas.

Her attempts to return after the June earthquakes, which killed over 4,000, were blocked, however. She tried flying from Virginia to Curaçao en route to Venezuela, but Dutch authorities denied entry after the US refused support. A later attempt from Panama also failed amid reported American interference, though Trump has denied it.

US officials called her move “grotesque” political opportunism and a distraction from recovery efforts. One senior figure reportedly asked whether backing her return meant the US was installing her “in power”. It turns out the Trump administration stressed “stability” under acting President Delcy Rodríguez, and prioritized coordinated aid over opposition returns. It would seem Machado’s gift of her Nobel medal to........

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