From there, Machado crossed to the nearby Dutch Caribbean island of Curazao, a 65-kilometer maritime route, under continued surveillance. Concurrently, two U.S. Navy F18 aircraft patrolled the Gulf of Venezuela for over 40 minutes in proximity to her route. Upon arrival in Curazao, she boarded a Mexican-registered Legacy 600 private jet operated by JetVip Business Aviation, flying initially to Bangor, Maine, for a technical stop before completing a transatlantic flight of over six hours to Oslo Gardermoen Airport. The total journey exceeded 9,000 kilometers and delayed her arrival by nearly three days, preventing her attendance at the official Nobel ceremony.
Her daughter, Ana Corina Sosa Machado, accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on her behalf, reading a speech situating Venezuela’s struggle within a historical and cultural framework emphasizing republican values dating to 1811. Upon arrival in Oslo, Machado appeared publicly for the first time in over a year, addressing supporters from the Grand Hotel balcony, an emblematic act for Nobel laureates. The reception included family, political allies, and Venezuelan expatriates who celebrated the international acknowledgment of Venezuela’s opposition movement.
Machado has acknowledged U.S. support in facilitating her escape and expressed intent to return to Venezuela once security conditions permit, independent of the Maduro regime’s status. She publicly endorsed U.S. President Donald Trump’s policies against the Maduro government without explicitly supporting a military intervention. Machado’s arrival in Oslo and recognition signal heightened international focus on Venezuela’s ongoing political crisis and the opposition’s efforts to catalyze democratic transition amid authoritarian repression.
This article was curated and published as part of our South American energy market coverage.
