Source: San Diego Union-Tribune
“Pope Leo XIV met with Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado in a private audience at the Vatican on Monday, during which the Venezuelan leader asked him to intercede for the release of hundreds of political prisoners held in the Latin American country. The meeting, which hadn’t been previously included in the list of Leo’s planned appointments, was later listed by the Vatican in its daily bulletin, without adding details. Machado is touring Europe and the United States after she reemerged in December after 11 months in hiding to accept her Nobel Peace Prize in Norway. … Pope Leo has called for Venezuela to remain an independent country after U.S. forces [abducted] former President Nicolás Maduro in his compound in Caracas and took him to New York to face federal charges of drug-trafficking.” (01/12/26)
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/01/12/pope-meets-venezuela-opposition-machado/