Nobel Peace Prize 2025: Former President Barack Obama congratulates winner Maria Machado; hails her 'courageous struggle'

This year’s outcome surprised no one. From Oslo insiders to Washington pundits, the verdict was always the same: Trump was never going to win. The Nobel Peace Prize, for all its hypocrisies, is meant to honour those who “advance fraternity among nations” — those who build peace through cooperation, diplomacy, and trust.

The United States’ modern campaign against Maduro began quietly under Barack Obama. As Venezuela slid deeper into crisis following Hugo Chávez’s death in 2013, Washington’s strategy was one of incremental pressure. In 2015, Obama signed an executive order declaring Venezuela a “national security threat” — a technical step that enabled targeted sanctions against top regime officials accused of corruption and human rights abuses.

Venezuelan activist Maria Corina Machado was awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights” and peaceful transition from dictatorship, defying Nicolás Maduro’s repressive regime while inspiring millions through advocacy for free elections. The decision sparked reactions from world leaders who had supported US President Donald Trump for the award. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu praised Trump’s peace efforts, while Vladimir Putin criticized the Nobel Committee, calling it “enormous damage to the prize’s reputation” and lauding Trump’s role in resolving complex international crises. Trump, who had claimed credit for deals including the Gaza ceasefire, was ultimately passed over. The prize includes a diploma, gold medal, and $1.2 million, with 338 nominations submitted for 2025.

"This immense recognition of the struggle of all Venezuelans is a boost to complete our task: to conquer Freedom. We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we have President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our main allies to achieve Freedom and democracy," she added in a post on X.

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to promote democracy. Donald Trump, heavily backed by Pakistan for the prize, was snubbed despite his self-promotion and claims of peacemaking. Pakistan’s public support for Trump now appears diplomatically costly. The Nobel Committee stressed that lobbying holds no sway, favouring enduring peace efforts over rhetoric and self-congratulation.

Venezuelan opposition figure Maria Corina Machado expressed her astonishment upon learning that she had received the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday,

In the video shared with AFP by her press team, Machado exclaimed, "I'm in shock!" during a telephone conversation with Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who succeeded her as a candidate in the previous presidential elections after authorities disqualified her from participating.

"We're shocked with joy," responded Gonzalez, who has been living in exile for nearly a year. "What is this? I can't believe it," responded the 58-year-old Machado, who currently resides in seclusion within Venezuela.

María Corina Machado, a key figure in Venezuela’s democracy movement, has been recognised for her tireless efforts to secure free elections and representative government. Born in Caracas in 1967, Machado trained as an industrial engineer before founding Súmate in 2002, a volunteer group promoting political rights and monitoring elections.

Despite Venezuela’s deteriorating democratic institutions under President Nicolás Maduro, Machado stood firm. Blocked from running in the 2024 presidential election, she backed Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia’s candidacy and mobilised volunteers to ensure election tallies were properly documented, preventing the regime from manipulating results. The Nobel Committee praised her leadership in safeguarding democracy under extreme pressure.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee said María Corina Machado had helped “keep the flame of democracy burning against a growing darkness.”

Announcing the award at a ceremony in Oslo on Friday, the committee praised Machado’s “struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has clarified that any potential Israel-Gaza peace agreement will not influence the 2025 Peace Prize selection, as the decision was finalized earlier this week. Despite this, Donald Trump's active lobbying and public claims of resolving multiple conflicts have intensified scrutiny, placing Norway in a delicate diplomatic position.

Jørgen Watne Frydnes, Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, confirmed that the 2025 Peace Prize laureate has already been determined, and any developments related to the Gaza conflict will be considered for the 2026 award.

Trump expressed skepticism about receiving the prize, suggesting that the committee might "find a reason not to give it to me."

The White House and Trump's allies have been actively promoting his candidacy, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly endorsing the US president for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Ahead of the Nobel Peace Prize announcement, US President Donald Trump asserted that he has successfully resolved seven international conflicts, positioning himself as a strong contender for the award.

The White House amplified this narrative by sharing a photo of Trump with the caption “The Peace President,” highlighting his diplomatic achievements. Trump expressed skepticism about receiving the prize, suggesting that despite his efforts, the Nobel Committee might find reasons to deny him the honor.

Ahead of the Nobel Peace Prize announcement, Donald Trump's assertion that he ended "seven wars" has been met with skepticism—not only from human experts but also from leading AI chatbots.

Models such as ChatGPT, Google's Gemini, Grok, and Perplexity independently evaluated Trump's claim and found it to be largely unsupported by factual evidence. These AI systems analyzed each of the seven conflicts Trump cited—ranging from India-Pakistan to Israel-Iran—and concluded that while there were instances of de-escalation, there was no conclusive evidence that full-scale wars were ended through his intervention.

For instance, ChatGPT noted that the claim was "disputed, vague, or exaggerated," and emphasized that "ending" a war requires a visible, verifiable, stable ceasefire or peace deal, which was not evident in these cases.

As the Nobel Peace Prize 2025 announcement approaches, all eyes are on the five-member Norwegian Nobel Committee responsible for selecting the laureate. Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed credit for brokering peace in multiple conflicts, including a recent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

The committee members, appointed by Norway's parliament, are tasked with choosing the recipient based on Alfred Nobel's will, which stipulates the prize be awarded to those who have “most or the best work for fraternity between nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses”

The current members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee are:

• Jørgen Watne Frydnes – Chair of the committee since 2021, Frydnes is a human rights advocate with a background in organizations like Médecins Sans Frontières and the Norwegian Helsinki Committee. He is known for his support of Norway's Labour Party.
• Asle Toje – Vice-chair since 2021, Toje is a conservative political scientist and former research director at the Norwegian Nobel Institute. He has been a member since 2018 and was reappointed for the 2024–2029 term.
• Anne Enger – A member since 2018, Enger is a former deputy prime minister and has been active in Norwegian politics, particularly with the Centre Party. She was reappointed for the 2021–2026 term.
• Kristin Clemet – An economist and former education minister, Clemet is a member of the Conservative Party. She was appointed to the committee in 2021 for the 2021–2026 term.
• Gry Larsen – A former state secretary in the Foreign Ministry and head of CARE Norway, Larsen has been critical of Trump's foreign aid policies. She was appointed to the committee for the 2024–2029 term.

Over the years, four US Presidents have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their contributions to diplomacy and global peace.

• Theodore Roosevelt (1906): Honoured for his role in ending the war between Japan and Russia.
• Woodrow Wilson (1919): Recognised as the founder of the League of Nations, promoting international cooperation.

• Jimmy Carter (2002): Awarded for his decades-long efforts to resolve conflicts, advance democracy, and promote human rights and development.
• Barack H Obama (2009): Recognised for his “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.”

President Donald Trump has publicly criticized the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to his predecessor, Barack Obama, claiming that Obama received the honor "for doing nothing."

Trump contrasted this by emphasizing his own role in brokering a historic peace agreement between Israel and Hamas, which he believes merits the prestigious award. The agreement, announced just days before the Nobel Peace Prize announcement, secured the release of hostages and Palestinian prisoners, marking a significant diplomatic achievement.