Donald Trump <\/a>at the White House.<\/p>\nAdministration spokesperson Karoline Leavitt reported that the president maintains his previous assessment of Machado after being questioned at a press conference about a potential change of opinion.<\/p>\n
According to Leavitt, Trump\u2019s stance is based on a \u00abrealistic evaluation, grounded in what the president was reading and hearing from his advisors and national security team.\u00bb<\/p>\n
\u00abAt this moment, his opinion on the matter has not changed,\u00bb the spokesperson emphasized.<\/p>\n
Machado arrived alone, dressed in white, around noon for a lunch with the U.S. president, entering through a side door instead of the main entrance designated for heads of state and high-ranking officials.<\/p>\n
The closed-door meeting took place in the dining room adjacent to the Oval Office, without the presence of cameras or reporters, which is unusual for the Republican magnate.<\/p>\n
Additionally, it was scheduled to partially coincide with the press conference held by spokesperson Leavitt.<\/p>\n
This meeting, the first between the two, occurred nearly two weeks after a military attack carried out by U.S. forces against Venezuela, which resulted in over a hundred deaths among civilians and military personnel, along with dozens of injuries.<\/p>\n
The bombings ordered by Trump were reported during the early hours of January 3 in Caracas and some areas of La Guaira, Aragua, and Miranda states, culminating in the kidnapping of the constitutional president of the Caribbean nation, Nicol\u00e1s Maduro Moros, and his wife, Cilia Flores.<\/p>\n
Following Maduro\u2019s transfer and the forced absence of the president, the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) appointed the executive vice president, Delcy Rodr\u00edguez, as the acting president of Venezuela.<\/p>\n
The day before her lunch with Machado, the White House resident referred to Rodr\u00edguez as a \u00abwonderful person\u00bb with whom the United States \u00abworks very well\u00bb since she assumed the interim presidency.<\/p>\n
This stance contrasts sharply with his opinion of the far-right opposition leader, whom Trump has dismissed, making it clear that she lacks leadership in Venezuela.<\/p>\n
\u00abI think it would be very difficult for her (Machado) to be the leader. She does not have support or respect in the country. She is a very nice woman, but she lacks the necessary respect,\u00bb the president stated during a press conference on January 3, hours after the attacks on the Caribbean nation.<\/p>\n
Machado Presents Trump with a \u2018Nobel Peace Prize\u2019 Medal<\/span><\/h3>\nThe meeting lasted just over two hours, during which Machado presented Trump with the Nobel Peace Prize medal she received in Oslo last December amid significant controversy, particularly for promoting a military attack and intervention against her own country.<\/p>\n
\u00abI presented the President of the United States with the Nobel Peace Prize medal,\u00bb she declared outside the U.S. Capitol after the meeting.<\/p>\n
This gesture was perceived as an attempt by the Venezuelan far-right representative to ingratiate herself with the U.S. president due to his well-known interest in winning that award and the disappointment he experienced in not obtaining it.<\/p>\n
\u00abI ENDED 8 WARS without anyone\u2019s help, and Norway, a NATO member, foolishly decided not to award me the Nobel Peace Prize,\u00bb the far-right president wrote on his social media last week.<\/p>\n
In addition to misspelling the name of the award, he also attributed the decision to all of Norway instead of the five-member committee that selects independently of the Oslo government.<\/p>\n
Following the conclusion of the meeting, the Republican took about five hours, another rarity, to post a message on his social media platform, Truth, describing the meeting as \u00aba great honor.\u00bb <\/p>\n
\u00abShe is a wonderful woman who has gone through many hardships. Mar\u00eda offered me the Nobel Peace Prize for the work I have done,\u00bb Trump wrote. \u00abIt\u2019s a wonderful gesture of mutual respect. Thank you, Mar\u00eda!\u00bb<\/p>\n
However, he did not provide details about their conversation and did not immediately share a photo of the award, which later emerged in an exclusive from The New York Post<\/em> and then via a White House publication.<\/p>\n\n
The image shows both of them in the Oval Office, with the magnate smiling broadly while holding the framed medal, which allegedly bears a message of thanks \u00abfrom the Venezuelan people.\u00bb <\/p>\n\n\n
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