Machado hands the Nobel Peace Prize to Trump, but the Nobel Foundation says it cannot be transferred

The Nobel Foundation emphasizes that the original recipient of the Peace Prize retains it indefinitely, regardless of who owns the medal or their subsequent political activity.

Following public outcry over Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado’s decision to give her Nobel Peace Prize medal to US President Donald Trump, the Nobel Foundation and the Norwegian Nobel Committee have formally clarified that the award cannot be shared, transferred, or revoked.

During a meeting at the White House on Thursday, Machado gave Trump the actual gold medal, calling it a symbolic acknowledgment of his “commitment to the freedom of the Venezuelan people.” Trump plans to keep the medal, according to a White House official.

“Maria presented me with her Nobel Peace Prize for the work I have done,” Trump tweeted on social media later that day, calling the gesture “a wonderful gesture of mutual respect.” What a beautiful sign of respect for one another. Maria, thank you!

The framed medal, which read, “To President Donald J. Trump In Gratitude for Your Extraordinary Leadership in Promoting Peace through Strength, Personal Symbol of Gratitude on behalf of the Venezuelan People,” was held by Trump in a White House photo.

Machado described the meeting as “excellent” and clarified that the medal was intended as a token of gratitude for Trump’s backing of Venezuelan independence.

The discussion, which was the two parties’ first face-to-face meeting, took place weeks after US agents arrested President Nicolás Maduro in Caracas and accused him of drug trafficking, a move that has changed the political landscape of Venezuela.

The Nobel Foundation reaffirmed long-standing guidelines for Nobel Prizes in response to the unusual transfer of the physical medal.

One of the Foundation’s primary goals, according to a statement published on X, is to

“safeguard the dignity of the Nobel Prizes and their administration,” emphasizing that Alfred Nobel’s will specifies exactly how rewards are given out.

According to the Foundation, “it specifies who has the right to award each respective prize and states that the prizes shall be awarded to those who ‘have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind.” “Therefore, a prize cannot be transferred or distributed further, not even symbolically.”

Further inquiries were directed by the Foundation to the Norwegian Nobel Committee, which likewise issued a thorough statement elucidating that although diplomas and medals are subject to ownership changes, the Peace Prize itself is forever linked to the original recipient.

“The original laureate is and remains the one who is documented in history as the recipient of the prize, regardless of what happens to the medal, the diploma, or the prize money,” the committee stated. “This does not change who was given the Nobel Peace Prize, even if the medal or diploma later ends up in someone else’s possession.”

“A laureate cannot share the prize with others, nor transfer it once it has been announced,” the committee also stated. Additionally, a Nobel Peace Prize cannot be taken away. The ruling is final and enforceable forever.

Noting that medals, diplomas, and prize money have been donated, sold, given as gifts, or put in museums in the past, it also emphasized that there are no limitations on what laureates may do with them.

Among the examples given were Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov, who sold his medal for USD 103.5 million in 2022 and gave the money to UNICEF to aid Ukrainian refugee children, and former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, whose widow gave his medal and diploma to the UN Office in Geneva.

“The Norwegian Nobel Committee does not see it as their role to engage in day to day commentary on Peace Prize laureates or the political processes that they are engaged in,” the committee stated in response to a wider discussion about its refusal to comment on laureates’ subsequent political activities.

Despite Trump’s prior complaints about being passed over and his interest in receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, Nobel authorities emphasized that Machado is still the only and permanent recipient of the award, regardless of who currently possesses the actual medal.