United States President Donald Trump has indicated that he may meet Venezuelan opposition figure Maria Corina Machado when she visits Washington next week, a move that could mark their first direct engagement.
Trump disclosed this during an interview with Fox News on Thursday, saying he had been informed that Machado would arrive in the US capital in the coming days.
“I understand she’s coming in next week sometime, and I look forward to saying hello to her,” the president said.
The planned meeting comes a little over a week after US forces arrested Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, transporting them to New York to face trial over alleged drug trafficking and weapons-related charges.
Despite the anticipated meeting, Trump reiterated his skepticism about Machado’s political standing in Venezuela, arguing that she lacks sufficient domestic support to govern the country.
Trump also suggested that Venezuela, now under interim President Delcy Rodríguez, is not in a position to organise fresh elections in the near future.
“We have to rebuild the country. They couldn’t have an election,” he said. “They wouldn’t even know how to have an election right now.”
Machado, a prominent opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has reportedly offered to share her Nobel Prize with Trump, who has repeatedly claimed he deserved the award.
On Thursday, Trump described it as a “major embarrassment” that he had not been selected for the prize by the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
“I understand she wants to do that,” Trump said, referring to Machado’s reported offer. “That would be a great honor.”
The White House has not yet released details of a formal meeting schedule, but Trump’s remarks have heightened speculation about the future of US engagement with Venezuela’s opposition amid the country’s ongoing political transition.
