María Corina Machado, the Venezuelan opposition leader and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, remains outside the country as of late August 2026 following her secret departure in December 2025. She has repeatedly signaled intent to return before year-end to participate in the post-Maduro transition under interim President Delcy Rodríguez and to aid quake recovery efforts after June 2026 earthquakes. Multiple attempted entries via Curaçao in late June were aborted after the Trump administration signaled opposition, citing risks of unrest or clashes with Venezuelan security forces during the humanitarian crisis. The Venezuelan government has closed airspace and imposed other barriers, while formal opposition-regime talks launched in August have proceeded without Machado in a lead role. These political, security, and diplomatic constraints continue to shape assessments of near-term reentry feasibility.