The new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Liz Truss, has rejected the possibility of a deal with Greece to return the Parthenon Marbles to Athens.
The Parthenon Marbles have been housed in the British Museum since the early 19th century after they were stolen off the Parthenon at the Acropolis in Athens by Lord Elgin.
But when asked during an interview with GB News whether she would consider a possible loan agreement with Greece, Ms Truss was immoveable.
“I do not support that,” Mr Truss said bluntly, without elaboration.
The Chairman of the British Museum, George Osborne, first proposed the possible loan agreement in June this year.
“A deal is to be done where we can tell both stories in Athens and in London if we both approach this without a load of preconditions, without a load of red lines…” Mr Osborne said at the time during an interview with LBC radio station.
Greece’s Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, also hinted just this week that he would speak to Ms Truss about the return of the Parthenon Marbles during an intergovernmental meeting set for later this year.
“At a time when Truss will be looking to build her credibility and when the UK is sort of cornered in terms of its overall image after the [Queen Elizabeth II’s] funeral it will be a fantastic gesture, and that’s what I’ll tell her,” Mitsotakis told the Sunday Times.
The UK PM’s latest statement though confirms that the journey to repatriating the Parthenon Marbles will not be smooth sailing despite Ms Truss’ appointment heralding a new age in British politics after the resignation of Boris Johnson – who also didn’t agree to the return of the Marbles.
READ MORE: ‘Ι will continue fighting until the Parthenon Marbles return to Greece’: Emanuel J. Comino.
Source: ART News.
