The Government maintains a striking silence The PP has run to congratulate the leader of the opposition to the Chavista regime of Nicolás Maduro while Alberto Núñez Feijóo has disgraced Pedro Sánchez for his silence. The Moncloa has not issued a signal on another day in which Venezuela has once again been a central issue of domestic politics in Spain. The president held a meeting in the morning in Ferraz with the leadership of the Socialist International that he has presided over since 2022 and has not sent any message in public about the recognition of the Norwegian committee to the political leader, in hiding due to the repression in Caracas for “her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela.” Sánchez has published on his X account a message for World Mental Health Day, another for an installation of an Artificial Intelligence factory in health and a third for the meeting of the Socialist International.
The ministers who have had events with the press, such as Félix Bolaños and Margarita Robles, have not spoken when they have been asked. “It is not up to me to evaluate the decision made by the Nobel committee, I do tell you that Spain is always a country committed to human rights, to democracy, to peace prevailing throughout the world,” responded the Minister of the Presidency, who then highlighted that “Spain worked intensely so that the person who has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize was released during the time he was in prison.”
-“What do you think of the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to María Corina Machado?”, they asked the Minister of Defense.
-“Well, I think what is important now at this moment… For me the Nobel Prize, beyond the people, is that we have an important commitment to peace in Gaza. I hope that this peace is also a peace in Ukraine, that it will be soon, and Spain will always be committed there. And we are firmly committed precisely to the Atlantic alliance, to aid to Ukraine, and that is something that I hope President Trump values,” he said. was his response.
The first vice president, María Jesús Montero, in turn commented in an appearance in San Fernando that Donald Trump “will be somewhat upset or will have some disappointment” after having learned that the Nobel Peace Prize was for Machado, to the point that he had put pressure on the Norwegian Government and the institution that awards them. The jury has defined the winner as “a leader of the democratic forces in Venezuela” and as “a figure of unity in an opposition that was previously divided” who could not run in the 2024 presidential elections due to being disqualified. Edmundo González Urrutia took his place. The meeting did not appear on Sánchez’s agenda nor were journalists summoned. The only images of the meeting were spread on the president’s social networks, which emphasized the “humanitarian” and “solidarity” nature of the meeting, rather than the political one.
The former high representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, has congratulated Machado for the “well-deserved” Nobel Peace Prize for his role in finding “a peaceful solution through democratic means to the conflict” in the South American country. In a message on social network
Feijóo has taken the opportunity to charge against the President of the Government. “The 2025 Nobel Peace Prize not only honors a personal feat. It sends a decisive message to the world: the path to peace is democratic firmness and not complicity with tyranny. That is why Sánchez has not yet congratulated her. Not only have they woken up from their daydreams, but they have been placed before the mirror of their infamy.” The leader of the PP has celebrated the recognition of Machado as “great news for Venezuela and for all those who keep alive a titanic fight for democracy”, while highlighting that this award has been granted to “a woman who is incorruptible in her commitment to freedom”. “Spain will once again have a Government that moves away from the dark interests of Sánchez and Zapatero, and defends freedom with the courage of Machado,” he concluded.
“What a great joy! Venezuela will soon have a president, and she is a Nobel Peace Prize winner,” reacted the president of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso. “A bad day for socialism,” was the reaction of the PP Deputy Secretary of Sectoral Coordination, Alma Ezcurra.
The Lehendakari, Imanol Pradales, has also congratulated the Venezuelan opposition leader on social networks. “Congratulations to María Corina Machado, 2025 Nobel Peace Prize winner, for her tireless work promoting the democratic rights of the people of Venezuela. The Basque people will always be with democracy and human rights,” stressed the PNV leader.
The European Union has highlighted that the award sends a “powerful message” that democracy and freedom “always prevail.” “This award honors not only your courage and conviction. But also all the voices that refuse to be silenced in Venezuela and around the world,” said the president of the European Commission, the conservative Ursula von der Leyen, in a message on social networks. “The spirit of freedom cannot be imprisoned. The thirst for democracy always prevails,” he added, insisting that “the fight continues” for the reestablishment of democracy in Venezuela.
The president of the European Council, the socialist Antonio Costa, has indicated that the award is a “testament” of Machado’s “tireless work” for justice. “For your firm commitment to democracy, Human Rights and your fight for freedom in Venezuela,” said the former Portuguese president.
