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Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has accused British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of unexpectedly calling off their scheduled meeting in London due to a diplomatic dispute over the whereabout of the Parthenon Sculptures. The long-standing issue stems from Greece’s repeated pleas for the permanent return of the 2,500-year-old sculptures that were removed from the Parthenon temple by British diplomat Lord Elgin during the 19th century when he served as ambassador to the Ottoman Empire.
Mitsotakis expressed his dismay, stating, “I express my annoyance that the British Prime Minister cancelled our planned meeting just hours before it was due to take place.” The Greek Prime Minister emphasized the country’s steadfast stance on the return of the Parthenon Sculptures and that he had hoped to discuss this matter with Sunak.
The dispute has been central to discussions between the Greek government and British Museum chair George Osborne. Mitsotakis voiced his frustration over the slow progress of talks to secure the return of the sculptures to Athens, likening their continued presence in the British Museum to splitting the “Mona Lisa in half” and stressed that it was about “reunification,” rather than ownership. This sentiment has been echoed by Mitsotakis in an interview with the BBC.
A British government official, who wished to remain anonymous, noted that the argument over the marbles made it unfit for the meeting to proceed, while Sunak’s spokesperson confirmed that there were no intentions to return the sculptures. Deputy British Prime Minister Oliver Dowden was made available as an alternative to meet Mitsotakis to address these issues. This comes after a meeting between Mitsotakis and British opposition leader Keir Starmer took place on Monday, as reported by the Financial Times last week.
Notably, Labour has declined to provide a comment on the matter. The longstanding dispute continues to drive a wedge between the two nations, as Greece seeks to reunify the revered Parthenon Sculptures, while Britain maintains its stance of ownership, citing the legality of their acquisition years ago.
