Connect with us
Finance Digest is a leading online platform for finance and business news, providing insights on banking, finance, technology, investing,trading, insurance, fintech, and more. The platform covers a diverse range of topics, including banking, insurance, investment, wealth management, fintech, and regulatory issues. The website publishes news, press releases, opinion and advertorials on various financial organizations, products and services which are commissioned from various Companies, Organizations, PR agencies, Bloggers etc. These commissioned articles are commercial in nature. This is not to be considered as financial advice and should be considered only for information purposes. It does not reflect the views or opinion of our website and is not to be considered an endorsement or a recommendation. We cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information provided with respect to your individual or personal circumstances. Please seek Professional advice from a qualified professional before making any financial decisions. We link to various third-party websites, affiliate sales networks, and to our advertising partners websites. When you view or click on certain links available on our articles, our partners may compensate us for displaying the content to you or make a purchase or fill a form. This will not incur any additional charges to you. To make things simpler for you to identity or distinguish advertised or sponsored articles or links, you may consider all articles or links hosted on our site as a commercial article placement. We will not be responsible for any loss you may suffer as a result of any omission or inaccuracy on the website.

NEWS

Greece, Britain discussing Parthenon Sculptures return but deal not close, Athens says

Published On :

By Renee Maltezou

ATHENS (Reuters) – The Greek government on Monday quashed local media reports that a deal with Britain over the repatriation of the Parthenon Sculptures to Athens was imminent but said the two sides were in talks on the long-running dispute.

The British government also said it had no plans to change laws which prevent the removal of such items from the Britsh Museum’s collection. The museum, custodian of the sculptures known in Britain as the Elgin Marbles, also reiterated it would not dismantle its collection.

Greece has repeatedly called for the permanent return from the British Museum of the 2,500-year-old sculptures, which British diplomat Lord Elgin removed from the Parthenon temple in the early 19th century when he was ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, Greece’s then-ruler.

Greece’s Ta Nea newspaper on Saturday cited a Greek source as saying that an agreement was 90% complete but that “a critical 10% remains unresolved.

Since the beginning of its term the government has been and is in talks with the British side,” government spokesman Giannis Oikonomou said on Monday when asked about the media reports.

“These discussions are at a preliminary stage. We are far from announcements or a final deal,” he said.

Last week, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said that there was “progress” and a sense of “momentum” in talks with Britain to reunite the sculptures in Greece.

The British Museum has always ruled out returning the marbles, which include about half of the 160-metre (525-ft) frieze that adorned the Parthenon, and insists they were legally acquired.

The museum said in a statement on Monday it would not dismantle its collection “as it tells a unique story of our common humanity”. However, it said it wanted to forge a new “Parthenon Partnership” with Greece.

We are seeking new positive, long-term partnerships with countries and communities around the world, and that of course includes Greece,” it said.

Asked about British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s position on their return, a spokesman said Britain had no plans to change laws which prevent removing objects from the collection apart from in certain circumstances.

“Our position on this hasn’t changed. Decisions relating to the care and management of the collections are a matter for the museum and its trustees,” the spokesman said.

Citing a British official, Greece’s ANT1 TV said on Sunday that the only way to return the sculptures to Greece without violating British law was “if the British Museum opened a kind of annex in Greece.

In March, the United Nations’ cultural agency UNESCO urged Greece and Britain to reach a settlement on the issue.

Greece stepped up its campaign for the return of the marbles after opening a new museum in 2009 at the foot of the Acropolis hill that it hopes will one day house them.

In May, the so-called “Fagan fragment”, a 35-by-31-cm (12-by-14-inch) piece showing the foot of the seated ancient Greek goddess Artemis, which was part of the 5th century BC temple’s eastern frieze, was permanently returned to Athens from a museum in Italy.

 

(Additional reporting by Michael Holden and Alistair Smout in London; Editing by Crispian Balmer and Angus MacSwan)

Continue Reading

Why pay for news and opinions when you can get them for free?

       Subscribe for free now!


By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: . You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact

Recent Posts