Venezuela announced on Monday that it was closing its embassy in Norway, less than a week after the opposition leader María Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Ms. Machado was awarded the prize for what the Norwegian Nobel Committee said was “her tireless work promoting democratic rights,” putting attention on the government of President Nicolás Maduro.

Venezuela did not attribute the closure to the peace prize selection, saying it was part of a wider realignment of its diplomacy.

In a statement posted on social media, Venezuela’s Foreign Ministry said it was reallocating resources to focus on establishing alliances with the Global South.

The statement added that Venezuela would also close its embassy in Australia and open new ones in Zimbabwe and Burkina Faso.

The moves were meant to “defend national sovereignty and actively contribute to the construction of a new world order based on justice, solidarity, and inclusion,” officials said in the statement.

Cecilie Roang, a spokeswoman for the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said in an email that Venezuelan officials had informed Norway of the closure but did not give an explanation. “This is regrettable,” she said.

She added: “Despite differing views on several issues, Norway remains committed to maintaining an open dialogue with Venezuela and will continue to work toward that goal.”

Mr. Maduro’s government has crushed protests and arrested dissidents, helping to spur an exodus from the country.

In recent weeks, the Trump administration — which has called Mr. Maduro’s government a “narco-terror cartel” — has amassed warships in the Caribbean and has begun blowing up boats that American officials say are carrying drugs from Venezuela.

Ms. Machado has signaled support for President Trump’s military buildup in the Caribbean, and her party has said that the boats are legitimate targets.

In an interview on Fox News last month, Ms. Machado said that Mr. Maduro was “the head of a narco-terrorist structure.”

The Norwegian government does not give out the Nobel Peace Prize. The five members of the Nobel committee, who are appointed by the Norwegian Parliament, accept nominations from a pool of potentially thousands of nominators and deliberate in secret to decide a winner.

Thor Halvorssen, the chief executive of the nonprofit organization Human Rights Foundation, wrote in a statement on social media that Venezuela’s closure of its embassy in Norway was “an act of political vengeance.”

Jonas Gahr Store, Norway’s prime minister, congratulated Ms. Machado on her prize on Friday. “The Norwegian Nobel Committee emphasized that democracy is a precondition for lasting peace,” Mr. Store said. “This is an important award that highlights how important it is to fight for fundamental human rights at a time when democracy is under threat.”

Ms. Machado became a political activist in 2002, helping to start a voter rights group, Súmate. She is a conservative former lawmaker and has long been a foil to Venezuela’s socialist ruling party.

Ms. Machado has been in hiding since the summer of 2024, when Mr. Maduro claimed victory in a vote that was widely seen as rigged.

Jonathan Wolfe contributed reporting.