Sir Keir Starmer will not discuss a return of the Elgin Marbles to Greece when he meets his Greek coutnerpart on Tuesday, Downing Street has said.
The prime minister will welcome Kyriakos Mitsotakis to No 10 on Tuesday morning, the Greek leader’s first official visit to the UK since a quarrel with Rishi Sunak’s government over the ancient marbles, also known as the Parthenon Sculptures.
Greece has long maintained that the Elgin Marbles were illegally removed from their place high atop Athens’ acropolis during a period of foreign occupation.
The government and the British Museum reject this characterisation.
Ahead of the meeting between the two premiers, Sir Keir’s official spokesman suggested conversation would not touch upon the marbles.
“It’s not going to be on the Prime Minister’s agenda. His focus will be on support for Ukraine, the urgent need for a ceasefire in Gaza,” the spokesman said.
He added: “Our position on the Elgin Marbles has not changed.
“It remains a matter for the British Museum, and the government has no plans to change the law to permit a permanent move of the Parthenon Sculptures.”
But it came amid reports that ongoing talks about the future of the statues are now “well advanced”, citing sources close to the negotiations between the museum and the Greek Foreign Ministry.
A cultural partnership would be likely to be at the heart of a deal, The Guardian said, which could see the sculptures returned to Athens in exchange for exhibitions of famous artworks.
The marble statues came from friezes on the 2,500-year-old Parthenon temple and have been displayed at the British Museum for more than 200 years.
They were removed by Lord Elgin in the early 19th century, when he was British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire.
Some of the remaining temple statues are on display in the purpose-built Acropolis Museum in Athens, and Greece has long called for the collections to be reunited.
A diplomatic row between Greece and the UK was sparked under the previous government when former PM Mr Sunak cancelled a meeting with Mr Mitsotakis, who had made a push for the sculptures’ return.
Mr Sunak denied having thrown a “hissy fit” over the matter and accused his counterpart of grandstanding.
Mr Mitsotakis had compared splitting the Elgin Marbles from those still in Athens to cutting the Mona Lisa in half.
