Venezuelan opposition leader vows to lead country 'when time is right' after meeting with Trump
"I want to serve my country where I am more useful - I got a mandate," says María Corina Machado
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado has vowed to lead the country "when the right time comes".
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The Nobel Peace Prize winner made the comments just a day after she gave the US President Donald Trump her medal in what she decribed as a recognition of his commitment to Venezuela's freedom.
"I believe I will be elected, when the right time comes, as president of Venezuela - the first woman president of Venezuela,” she told Fox News.
"I want to serve my country where I am more useful. I got a mandate, and I have that mandate," Ms Machado added.
The statement follows Ms Machado's meeting with Trump at the White House on Thursday, where she confirmed the extraordinary gift to reporters in an apparent attempt to win back the US President's favour.
She also visited Congress to meet US senators on her Washington trip.
Read more: Who is Venezuela's opposition leader María Corina Machado?
Read more: Nobel committee hits back after Venezuelan opposition leader 'gifts' Trump her Peace Prize medal
Political leaders in Norway, where the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded, have slammed Ms Machado’s decision to give her medal to Mr Trump as “absurd”.
On social media, the Nobel Peace Center said "a medal can change owners, but the title of a Nobel peace prize laureate cannot”.
Ms Machado has been a fierce critic of Venezuela’s former leader Nicolás Maduro, who was ousted following an extraordinary operation by US Special Forces earlier this month.
However, she was was unexpectedly sidelined by Mr Trump - who refused to recognise the 58-year-old politician as Venezuela’s new leader after getting rid of Maduro.
Reports suggest the choice not to back Machado after ousting Maduro was due to soured relations between her and members of Trump’s team.
Concerns were also raised that she would be unable to control the security situation in the country, which remains volatile.
“The president’s assessment was based on realities on the ground. It was a realistic assessment based on what the president was reading and hearing from his national security team. At this moment in time his opinion on that matter has not changed,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday.