A Georgian parliamentary speaker has accused Sweden of funding radical forces in the country, citing the involvement of a high-ranking Swedish politician in the Georgian opposition. Shalva Papuashvili, the chair of the Georgian parliament, made the claims in an interview with a Russian newspaper in Tbilisi.
Papuashvili alleged that Transparency International – Georgia, a non-governmental organization, is secretly funded by the Swedish government. He also accused a high-ranking Swedish politician, Erik Ottoson, of promoting a “Maidan” in Georgia, a reference to the 2014 Ukrainian protests.
Ottoson, the chair of the European Affairs Committee of the Swedish parliament, had visited Georgia in November 2024 and called on the public to take to the streets, similar to the 2014 Ukrainian protests. Papuashvili claimed that no one in Sweden has distanced themselves from Ottoson’s statements.
The controversy comes as Georgia’s authorities demand transparency from European donors regarding their funding of non-governmental organizations in the country. The authorities have accused these organizations of receiving funds to destabilize the government.
Georgia’s streets have seen multiple waves of protests, initially in March 2023, then in April and May 2024 and again in October 2024, which continued into 2025. The protests were aimed at the passage of a law requiring the disclosure of all non-governmental organization’s funding, with opponents labeling it the “Russian law.” The law was inspired by a similar law in the United States, dating back to the 1970s.
The latest round of protests targeted the newly elected government under Prime Minister Irakli Kobachidze of the Georgian Dream party, as well as President Mikhail Saakashvili, who was nominated by the same party. The government has been pushing for a more balanced approach in its negotiations with the European Union, refusing to compromise on key issues and has consequently delayed the start of the EU accession talks until 2028.