María Corina Machado meets Pope Leo before planned talks with Trump in Washington
ST PETER'S SQUARE, VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV met privately with Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado at the Vatican on Monday, January 12, in a meeting that was not listed on the pontiff’s public schedule.
The audience was later confirmed in the Holy See’s daily bulletin, without details of the discussion. The meeting came as Machado continued an international tour following her reemergence in December to accept the Nobel Peace Prize in Norway.
It also preceded an expected meeting between Machado and President Donald Trump later this week.
Vatican meeting held as Venezuela's political future remains uncertain
The Vatican confirmed that Pope Leo XIV received Machado in a private audience, adding the meeting to its noon bulletin after it took place.
No official readout was released. The audience drew attention as the Holy See has increasingly positioned itself as a diplomatic voice on Venezuela following the capture of former President Nicolás Maduro by US forces earlier this month.
Pope Leo, the first American-born pontiff, has publicly addressed developments in Venezuela in recent weeks.
In his Angelus message on January 4, he said that he was following events in the country with “deep concern” and called for respect for Venezuela’s sovereignty and for the protection of human and civil rights.
“The good of the beloved Venezuelan people must prevail over every other consideration,” the pope said at the time.
In a separate address to the diplomatic corps on January 9, Leo urged respect for “the will of the Venezuelan people” and emphasized the need to safeguard civil and human rights while working toward stability.
The pontiff also highlighted the humanitarian impact of Venezuela’s prolonged economic and political crisis, urging international cooperation to support the country’s poorest citizens.
Machado, a former National Assembly member and one of the most prominent figures in Venezuela’s opposition, has been outspoken in criticizing the country’s institutional and humanitarian collapse.
She won the opposition’s primary election two years ago but was barred from running in the general election under the Maduro government.
María Corina Machado's Vatican visit precedes planned meeting with Trump
Machado’s Vatican visit comes as she prepares to travel to Washington, where President Trump confirmed he expects to meet her in the coming days.
“Well, I understand she’s coming in next week sometime, and I look forward to saying hello to her,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News.
Maduro is currently being held in a New York prison after appearing before a federal judge on charges related to illicit trade and extremist violence following his capture by US forces on January 3.
Machado has argued that a democratic transition would ease Venezuela’s humanitarian crisis and help reverse mass migration.
After receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in December, she dedicated the award to the Venezuelan people and publicly said she would like to share it with Trump.
Trump, who has long expressed interest in receiving the Nobel Prize, said last week that such a gesture would be “a great honor,” though the Nobel Committee has stated that the prize is non-transferable.
