Key Facts
• January 12, 2026: Maria Corina Machado meets Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican.
• Machado is a Venezuelan opposition leader and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
• Discussion likely focused on Venezuela’s situation after U.S. detained President Maduro.
• Meeting details and statements remain undisclosed.
• Pope Leo XIV, U.S.-born, expressed strong concern over U.S. military actions.
• Machado had been in hiding in Venezuela, visited Oslo after Nobel ceremony on December 10, 2025.
• On January 5, 2026, Machado gave an interview to U.S. FOX News; her location was previously unknown.
• U.S. President Trump announced Machado will visit Washington this week for a meeting.
Summary
Maria Corina Machado, a prominent Venezuelan opposition figure and Nobel Peace Prize winner, met Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican on January 12, 2026. Their meeting likely addressed the evolving political crisis in Venezuela following the U.S. detention of President Nicolás Maduro. Although the specifics of their discussion were not revealed, Pope Leo XIV, originally from the United States, voiced serious concerns about U.S. military interventions and emphasized the protection of Venezuelan human rights. Machado, who had been in hiding, surfaced publicly after receiving the Nobel Prize in Oslo and later appeared in a U.S. media interview. U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans for Machado to visit Washington for talks, highlighting her growing international role amid Venezuela’s ongoing turmoil.
