Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has accused British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of canceling a scheduled meeting over a dispute regarding the Parthenon Sculptures. Greece has long been requesting the permanent return of the 2,500-year-old sculptures that were taken from the Parthenon temple by British diplomat Lord Elgin during the 19th century. Mitsotakis expressed his annoyance at the cancellation, stating that Greece’s position on the sculptures is well known and he had hoped to discuss it with his British counterpart. The Greek government has been in talks with the British Museum chair, George Osborne, regarding a possible loan deal for the sculptures. Mitsotakis has criticized the slow progress of the discussions and compared the presence of the sculptures in the British Museum to cutting the “Mona Lisa in half.” Sunak’s office responded by stating that there are no plans to return the sculptures, but Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden is available to discuss the issue with Mitsotakis. The British government has consistently refused to give up ownership of the sculptures, citing legal acquisition. While a law prohibits the removal of objects from the British Museum’s collection, a loan is not prohibited. A meeting between Mitsotakis and British opposition leader Keir Starmer took place as planned. The Financial Times reported that Starmer would not block a mutually acceptable loan deal for the sculptures, but the Labour party declined to comment.
Rishi Sunak Scraps Meeting With Greek PM Amid Dispute Over Parthenon Sculptures
