Georgian Parliament Speaker: shocking that Dutch Ambassador holds informal meeting with extremist politician

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Tuesday strongly criticised reports that the Dutch Ambassador to Georgia held an informal meeting with opposition politician Elene Khoshtaria shortly before her detention.

In his remarks, Papuashvili noted that if confirmed, such actions amount to direct interference in Georgia’s electoral process.

He argued that meeting with an opposition figure accused of politically motivated vandalism - damaging campaign banners of a political party - signals personal support and undermines diplomatic norms.

“It is astonishing when, the day after Khoshtaria committed a politically motivated crime by damaging campaign banners, the Dutch Ambassador invited this extremist politician to a private meeting. Informal meetings of this nature express personal attitudes or support, which is shocking”, the Speaker said.

Papuashvili stressed that the Vienna Convention explicitly prohibits diplomats from interfering in a host country’s political affairs, adding that such actions “encourage extremism in Georgia”.

He further described Khoshtaria as an “extremist politician” whose stated goal was to obstruct voters from expressing their will in the October 4 local elections and to bring about a violent change of government.

The Georgian Interior Ministry on Monday arrested the opposition leader Elene Khoshtaria for damaging campaign banners of Kakha Kaladze, the ruling Georgian Dream party's candidate for Tbilisi Mayor.