Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said President Donald Trump's recent comments suggesting Venezuela could become the "51st state" of the United States should be interpreted as a political message directed at the Delcy Rodriguez regime rather than a literal proposal, while also defending closer ties between Washington and a future democratic Venezuela.
"I think he is sending a message to many people, and certainly to the regime," Machado said in an interview with CNN when asked directly about Trump's remarks.
Machado added that Trump maintains a favorable view of Venezuela and argued that democratic change in the country would benefit both Venezuelans and the United States. "I know President Trump likes Venezuela very much, and for good reasons," she said. "It's a beautiful country, and above all, with wonderful people."
She also described a democratic transition as "a win-win solution" for both nations, arguing that political change in Caracas could help dismantle criminal structures and foreign networks allegedly operating inside Venezuela while encouraging Venezuelan migrants abroad to return home.
Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado on Trump floating Venezuela as America’s 51st state. Her interview with Erin tonight: pic.twitter.com/1QibBZ85Df
— Erin Burnett OutFront (@OutFrontCNN) May 15, 2026
Her comments came days after Trump and official White House social media accounts amplified references to Venezuela potentially becoming the "51st state" of the United States. One White House post featured an image of Venezuela overlaid with the American flag and the phrase "51st State," while another circulated memes referencing Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the January capture of Nicolás Maduro.
The posts also triggered a reaction from Venezuelan interim president Delcy Rodríguez who rejected the idea outright, saying Venezuela would continue defending its "integrity, sovereignty and independence."
"That is not on the table, it will never be on the table," Rodríguez said in The Hague, where she was attending proceedings related to Venezuela's territorial dispute over the Essequibo region. She nevertheless emphasized that Caracas and Washington had been pursuing "a diplomatic agenda of cooperation."
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Machado's remarks also come amid questions about her relationship with the Trump administration following reports that she was excluded from discussions surrounding Venezuela's post-Maduro transition framework. According to CNN, talks mediated by Qatar before Maduro's January capture did not contemplate Machado taking a leadership role, despite her close alignment with Washington's pressure campaign against Maduro.
Trump himself previously suggested Machado lacked sufficient support inside Venezuela to lead a transition government. Machado, however, has continued publicly backing the administration's approach while insisting Venezuela remains "a dictatorship."
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