Venezuela has announced it will close its embassy in Norway, just days after Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo.

A spokesperson for Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Reuters that the Venezuelan embassy did not provide a reason for the closure on Monday. “It is regrettable. Despite our differences on several issues, Norway wishes to keep the dialogue open with Venezuela and will continue to work in this direction,” the spokesperson added. They also emphasized that the Nobel Committee operates independently of the Norwegian government.

Machado, who has been in hiding since 2024, received the Nobel Peace Prize for her “extraordinary examples of civilian courage in Latin America in recent times.” She had been barred from running in last year’s Venezuelan election, which was won by President Nicolas Maduro in a widely contested vote. Machado dedicated her Nobel Prize to former U.S. President Donald Trump and “the suffering people of Venezuela.”

In addition to Norway, Venezuela has decided to close its embassy in Australia. Instead, the government plans to open new embassies in Burkina Faso and Zimbabwe, citing them as “strategic allies in the anti-colonial fight and in resistance to hegemonic pressures.”

Neither Norway nor Australia currently maintains an embassy in Venezuela; consular services for both countries are handled through their embassies in Colombia.

The move comes amid broader tensions between Venezuela and U.S.-aligned countries. Under the Trump administration, the U.S. has conducted multiple military strikes against alleged Venezuelan drug trafficking operations, prompting Maduro to accuse Washington of attempting regime change and call on the U.N. Security Council to intervene.