DOMINANT ANGLE
Brussels weighs in on Washington's role: María Corina Machado's return is presented as a challenge to Delcy Rodríguez, in a transition that the United States is driving without her.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
Machado returned to Venezuela on Sunday, October 25, after nearly a year in exile and arrived in Caracas in the evening (La Libre Belgique, according to AFP).
- 02
Delcy Rodríguez ensured that elections would be held, without specifying a date, and is leading negotiations backed by Washington, from which Machado is excluded.
- 03
Rubio considers the return a "direct result" of the US reconciliation process, while Trump says he knows nothing about it.
ANALYSIS
Brussels, 26 October 2026. The Belgian press is covering the return of María Corina Machado to Venezuela, on Sunday, 25 October, after nearly a year in exile. La Libre Belgique, citing AFP journalists, describes an opponent acclaimed by her supporters in Guacara, in the north of the country, before heading to Caracas in the evening, after a journey of several hundred kilometres. "Venezuela is giving a lesson to the whole world," she said.
For the daily, this return increases the pressure on the interim government to hold elections. It appears as a challenge for interim President Delcy Rodríguez, who is leading negotiations with part of the opposition, supported by Washington, on a democratic transition, from which Machado has been excluded. Rodríguez, who governs "under strong pressure from Washington", assured that elections would take place, without specifying a date. The crowd chanted: "We want elections, no more dialogue, elections now".
VRT NWS emphasizes the trajectory of the opponent. Nobel Peace Prize winner in 2025, Machado was to be the main rival of Nicolás Maduro in 2024, but she was excluded from the election, accused of corruption, and had long lived in hiding. The Flemish channel recalls that she offered her Nobel Prize to Donald Trump, a gesture that, according to her, brought her little benefit: after the abduction of Maduro and his wife by American special forces, Trump chose to work with Rodríguez and put Machado "completely aside". Washington has since exerted significant influence over the interim government.
American reactions, reported by La Libre, show this gap. When asked, Trump said he was not aware: "I don't know anything about it, but I think she's a very nice woman. She gave me her Nobel Prize, so how could I say otherwise?" Marco Rubio, on the other hand, sees it as the "direct result" of the "reconciliation" process under Washington's aegis.
The Belgian perspective is therefore one of a transition whose outcome depends less on the polls, for now, than on American arbitration. Both media outlets highlight the lack of an electoral calendar and the distance between the opponent and the White House, without taking a stance on the outcome.
