Venezuela closes embassy in Norway after Machado won the Nobel Prize

(Bloomberg) – President Nicolas Maduro will close the Embassy of Venezuela in Norway after the opposition leader Maria Machado received the Nobel Peace Prize and refuted Oslo’s attempt to recognize her struggle for democracy in the South American nation. Venezuela ordered his embassy to be closed to Norway’s capital due to an internal ‘reorganization’ of its diplomatic missions, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on Instagram. Venezuela will also include the embassy in Australia in accordance with the country’s ‘geopolitical principles’ of ‘peace and integration’. Norway was an important mediator in discussions between Maduro and Venezuela’s opposition. Maduro’s decision comes on the heels of Machado’s Peace Prize Award of 2025 on Friday and the Trump administration’s maximum pressure campaign in the Caribbean to hold him accountable as leader of a drug cartel. The government of Norway mediated between 2019 and 2024 to the and AF AF AF AFTERS ARRIVES between Maduro and the country’s opposition, which led to the failed Barbados agreement. Caracas’ decision on the closure of the embassy seems to put an end to its communication options with Oslo in the foreseeable future. Since the failed agreements, which Maduro has rejected throughout the time before holding a presidential vote of 2024 that was widely condemned by international observers as fraudulent, the international isolation has deepened Maduro’s government. While Venezuela requested a resolution in the United Nations Security Council to defend its sovereignty, neighboring countries did not act unanimously in defense of Maduro, but rather with caution. Brazil and Colombia have criticized American actions, while Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago endorsed the US deployment. In addition to the closures in Norway and Australia, Venezuela’s Instagram placement also announced the opening of representations in Zimbabwe and Burkina Fasso, “to strengthen ties with the global south.” More stories like these are available on Bloomberg.com © 2025 Bloomberg LP