Embassy staff first disconnected their phones on Monday afternoon. Then Norway's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the embassy closure.
"We have received information from Venezuela's embassy that they are closing the embassy, without justification. This is regrettable", writes the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in an email to VG and continues:
"Although we have different views on several issues, Norway wants to keep the dialogue with Venezuela open and will work for it."
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not confirm whether the closure of the embassy may have anything to do with the peace prize, but only points out that the prize is not linked to the Norwegian government.
María Corina Machado was awarded the peace prize by the Norwegian Nobel Committee for her "tireless work to promote democratic rights for the Venezuelan people and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy".
