Zurab “Girchi” Japaridze, one of the leaders of the Coalition for Change, has issued a statement regarding the circumstances of his detention at a Turkish airport.

In a social media post, the politician said he had been banned from entering Turkey since November 2025.

Japaridze noted that the incident had prevented him from attending important meetings.

“Today, I was flying to Brussels at the invitation of Renew Europe, where I was supposed to participate in the Leaders’ Summit. I had to change planes in Turkey. I was detained at the border.

“As they explain to me, I have been banned from entering Turkey since November 2025. They have received some information about me from official Georgian authorities. I am being sent back to Tbilisi tomorrow morning.

“Unfortunately, I have lost the opportunity to attend important meetings. There is nothing else to worry about,” Japaridze wrote.

Background: The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) was the first to report Japaridze’s detention.