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Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado held a private audience today with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican City, a diplomatic gesture that comes amid heightened political tensions in Venezuela and following significant international events related to the South American country.

Machado, internationally recognized for her fight against the Chavista regime and a 2015 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, was received by the head of the Roman Catholic Church in a meeting that was not initially on the Pope's official agenda, and no details of its content have been released.

The meeting comes at a time when Venezuela is experiencing a delicate political situation following the capture of former President Nicolás Maduro by US forces, an operation that has triggered statements from international leaders and a global debate on sovereignty, human rights, and the country's political future. Pope Leo XIV himself had expressed his concern about the events in Venezuela and publicly called for respect for the will of the Venezuelan people and the protection of the human and civil rights of all.

During the audience, Machado reportedly raised with the Pope issues related to the situation of political prisoners, the transition to a full democracy in Venezuela, and the need for moral and diplomatic support for the Venezuelan people. After the meeting, the opposition leader released messages of gratitude to the Pope for his attention to the crisis in her country and emphasized the importance of freedom and justice as pillars of any process of change.

Machado's visit to the Vatican comes days before a scheduled meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House, where they will discuss issues related to the Venezuelan crisis, the political transition, and the role of the international community in that process.

This meeting between a prominent figure in the Venezuelan opposition and the leader of the Catholic Church highlights the global dimension of the political conflict in Venezuela and the attention it has generated in various diplomatic and religious circles around the world.