Nobel Foundation reaffirms prize rules after Machado hands medal to Trump
The Nobel Foundation has reiterated that Nobel Prizes are inseparable from their laureates and cannot be transferred, shared or redistributed after the award is made, a clarification that gained global attention this week following an extraordinary political gesture in Washington.
According to the Foundation’s statutes, based on Alfred Nobel’s will, the prizes must be awarded to those “who have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind,” and once the decision is final and permanent.
The statement comes in the wake of Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado’s visit to the White House on 15 January 2026, during which she presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to US President Donald Trump as a symbolic “gesture of gratitude” for his support in Venezuela’s political transition. While Trump accepted the framed medal and publicly thanked Machado, officials from the Norwegian Nobel Committee, the body that selects Peace Prize laureates, emphasised that the title and recognition of the award remain with Machado and cannot be legally reassigned.
Machado, who was awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her long-standing advocacy for democracy and human rights in Venezuela’s struggle against authoritarian rule, described the presentation of the medal as a sign of respect and shared commitment to freedom. Trump praised the gesture on social media and displayed the framed medal in the White House. However, the Nobel institutions clarified that while a physical medal may change hands, the official status and merit of the Nobel Prize do not transfer with it.
The incident has sparked debate within Norway and internationally, with critics arguing that such public displays risk politicising one of the world’s most respected honours. Some Norwegian politicians labelled the act “absurd” and warned it could undermine the prestige of the prize, insisting the award’s meaning derives from a strict process and enduring principles established by Alfred Nobel.
By reaffirming that Nobel Prizes cannot be revoked or shared after they are awarded, the Nobel Foundation aims to uphold both the legal framework of Nobel honours and their symbolic value in global peace and scientific advancement. The recent controversy highlights the tension between political symbolism and the institutional safeguards designed to protect the Nobel legacy.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
