Finland‘s Prime Minister, Sanna Marin, has announced that she is divorcing her husband, Markus Raikkonen, after 19 years together.
The couple, both 37, have a five-year-old daughter, Emma Amalia Marin, together and were married nearly three years ago at an intimate ceremony in August 2020.
But the couple on Thursday announced they had filed for divorce, having been together since they were 18 years old.
“Together we’ve filed for divorce. We’re grateful for the 19 years together and for our beloved daughter,” Marin wrote on Instagram.
“We’re still best friends, close to each other and loving parents. Going forward we will still spend time together as a family and with each other. We wish you will respect our privacy. We won’t comment further on this.”
Marin will be stepping down as Prime Minister after her election defeat last month. She has been embroiled in a series of scandals over her partying during her time in office.
Marin was secretly filmed dancing intimately with Finnish singer Olavi Uusivirta, 39, in August last year, leading to him issuing a denial that they were having an affair. There is no suggestion Uusivirta is to blame for the couple’s split.
Uusivirta, who claimed that he and Marin were simply “friends” and “nothing inappropriate” had happened between them at the Helsinki nightclub, was seen in a video footage where Marin was draping her arms around him, while he was seen pressing his face against her neck at one point in a gesture suggestive of a kiss, according to some Finnish media reports.
