Overview
- In a video posted March 1, Machado said she will go back to Venezuela “in a few weeks,” without giving a firm date.
- She set three goals for her return: consolidate a national agreement, implement a roadmap for governance during a transition, and prepare for a “new and gigantic” electoral victory.
- While in the United States, she met President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and dozens of lawmakers and diplomats to rally backing for her plan.
- The announcement comes after the January 3 U.S. operation that captured Nicolás Maduro, with Delcy Rodríguez serving as interim president, a scenario Machado says should advance toward ending repression and reviving the economy.
- Venezuelan authorities have labeled her a fugitive and warned she must answer to the justice system if she returns; she left clandestinely in December after more than a year in hiding and later received the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize.