Finnish FM Valtonen fined in Tbilisi for blocking road during anti-Government protest

The Finnish Foreign Minister and current Chairperson of the OSCE, Elina Valtonen, was fined 5,000 GEL by Georgia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs for blocking central Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi this week. 

Valtonen was in Georgia on an official visit on Tuesday and visited a protest near the Parliament, which has been active since the Georgian Dream government’s decision late last year to delay the country’s EU integration until 2028, speaking with demonstrators.

The following day, the Georgian government issued a statement saying that due to participation in an “unlawful gathering” and allegedly making false statements, the PM Irakli Kobakhidze canceled a scheduled meeting with the Finnish foreign minister.

However, Valtonen later clarified to the Finnish publication Helsingin Sanomat that the meeting with Kobakhidze was canceled at Finland’s initiative due to schedule changes, not by the Georgian government.