The United States considers that there is no need to add “sensitive political issues” to the current humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, in response to the desire expressed by the opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado to be able to return to her country.
Machado posted a video on social media this week in which he announced that he was in Panama, and that he wanted to return to Venezuela but couldn’t because the government “closed the airspace” to prevent him from doing so.
“I want to return to Venezuela to accompany you in these heartbreaking hours“he asserted.
“The Trump Administration is solely focused on continuing to advance our efforts in response to the devastating earthquakes in Venezuela“A State Department spokesperson told AFP in an email.
When asked if the request expressed by Machado is appropriate, the spokesperson indicated: “Add political issues sensitive to the situation right now it’s counterproductive for our response efforts following this tragedy.
Machado left the country at the end of 2025 thanks to a risky military operation organized by the United States, to go collect the Nobel Prize in Oslo.
He later presented the framed award to President Donald Trump.
“They have (in reference to the Venezuelan government) threatened those who want to facilitate my return,” Machado says in his video.
“At this time I am willing to do what I have to do, talk to whoever I have to talk to” to be able to set foot on Venezuelan soil again, Machado says in her video.
