Venezuela closes embassy in Oslo after Nobel honour for opposition leader

Venezuela has closed its embassy in Oslo, Norway’s foreign ministry confirmed on Monday, days after opposition leader Maria Corina Machado won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize.

The ministry said it had been informed of the decision by Venezuelan officials, without any explanation. Local newspaper VG reported that calls to the embassy went unanswered before its phone lines were disconnected.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Cecilie Roang said Norway “wants to keep the dialogue with Venezuela open,” despite differing views.

Machado, a long-time critic of President Nicolás Maduro, was recognised for her efforts to promote democracy and free elections in Venezuela. She remains in hiding after being barred from holding public office and facing legal pressure from authorities.

The move comes amid speculation that the closure may be linked to Machado’s award, which has been celebrated by Venezuelan opposition groups but criticised by pro-government media in Caracas.

Although the Nobel ceremony takes place in Oslo, the Norwegian Nobel Committee says it operates independently and has no formal link to the Norwegian government.

Norway, which mediated talks between Maduro’s government and the opposition in 2019 and 2021, has yet to say whether diplomatic contact will continue through other channels.

Venezuela's government said on Monday it will close its embassies in Norway and Australia and open new ones in Burkina Faso and Zimbabwe as part of a restructuring of its foreign service, after weeks of growing tensions with the U.S.

The closures are part of the "strategic re-assignation of resources," President Nicolas Maduro's government said in a statement, adding that consular services to Venezuelans in Norway and Australia would be provided by diplomatic missions, with details to be shared in coming days.

Caracas said it was setting up new embassies in "two sister nations, strategic allies in the anti-colonial fight and in the resistance against hegemonic pressures."

It added that these new embassies would serve to launch joint projects involving agriculture, energy, education, mining and other common interests.

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