Sir Keir Starmer is believed to be on the verge of caving over the Elgin Marbles war with Greece. The PM had a face-off with his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis at Downing Street on Tuesday amid rumours a deal on Britain giving up the historic treasures is “close”.
Number 10 admitted the future of the ancient remains is now in the hands of the British Museum, where they have been held since 1816. Whitehall insiders had insisted the fiery issue would be low down on the agenda during the meeting between the two PMs.
But Mr Mitsotakis was said by sources to have been “likely” to raise the subject of returning the sculptures to Athens during his chat with Sir Keir. It’s also been claimed talks on giving back the artefacts are “well advanced”.
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(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Negotiations between the Greek foreign ministry and the British Museum’s chairman George Osborne are said to be edging towards an “agreement in principle” to return the ancient Parthenon Sculptures to Athens.
A source close to the talks said: “The mood music has completely changed.” At the top of his head-to-head on Tuesday Sir Keir said he hoped to “build on” Britain’s “strong bilateral relationship” with Greece and “talk about our common issues”.
Mr Mitsotakis added Greece saw the UK as “integral in addressing the security challenges that we are facing” in Ukraine and the Middle East. He has compared splitting the Elgin Marbles from those still in Athens to cutting the Mona Lisa in half.
(Image: Corbis via Getty Images)
A Greek government official declared as the PM met Sir Keir: “Progress for the return of the Parthenon marbles has been made by the two sides and that is why Mitsotakis is meeting today with the British prime minister. Nothing is in hiding – nothing is hidden.”
Greek newspaper Ta Nea has reported UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy was “keen” to talk to Greece about giving back the marbles.
It’s believed Sir Keir would not step in if the British Museum agreed a loan deal with the Greek government over the stones – but will not proactively lobby for one.
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Sir Keir’s official spokesman said: “It remains a matter for the British Museum and the government has no plans to change the law that would permit a permanent move of the Parthenon sculptures.”
A British Museum spokesman admitted: “Discussions with Greece about a Parthenon Partnership are on-going and constructive. We believe that this kind of long term partnership would strike the right balance between sharing our greatest objects with audiences around the world, and maintaining the integrity of the incredible collection we hold at the museum.”
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