The Greek prime minister “paid for” the Tory collapse in public opinion polls, according to British analyst Simon Nixon.
PARTHENON SCULPTURES
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has escalated his war of words with Kyriakos Mitsotakis, accusing the Greek premier of trying to “grandstand” over the disputed Parthenon Marbles and breaking a promise to the UK government ahead of a planned meeting between the two leaders.
European Commission Vice President Margaritis Schinas has described a decision by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to cancel a meeting with visiting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis “as un-British as it gets.”
The diplomatic spat between Rishi Sunak and Kyriakos Mitsotakis, triggered by the UK prime minister’s abrupt cancellation of a scheduled London meeting with his Greek counterpart after the latter restated Greece’s claim to the Parthenon sculptures housed in London, is not anticipated to impact the ongoing negotiations for a potential deal on the artifacts, according to British Museum officials who spoke to Kathimerini.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Wednesday described the abrupt cancellation of his planned meeting with UK counterpart Rishi Sunak in London as an “unfortunate incident.” Despite this, he expressed confidence that it would not have any impact on bilateral ties.
In the wake of the unprecedented spat with London, Athens believes the reasons behind the cancellation at the 11th hour of the meeting with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis by British counterpart Rishi Sunak on Monday evening were not a supposed “agreement” between the two sides not to discuss the Parthenon Sculptures issue, but political and diplomatic.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak cancelled Tuesday’s meeting with his Greek counterpart, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, after his office said the two sides had previously agreed that it should not be used as a public platform “to relitigate long, long settled matters,” a reference to ownership of the Parthenon Sculptures.
Greek officials said Tuesday that they will continue talks with the British Museum about bringing the Parthenon Marbles back to Athens, despite UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak canceling a meeting with his Greek counterpart where the contested antiquities were due to be discussed.
In a public statement last week, the National Museum of Denmark announced that it will be keeping three sculptural fragments from the 2,500-year-old Parthenon, currently on display in its permanent collection in Copenhagen.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s decision to cancel a meeting with his Greek counterpart in London just hours before Kyriakos Mitsotakis was expected at 10 Downing Street, is “unprecedented” and “disrespectful,” the government spokesman in Athens said on Tuesday.
The Greek government is working systematically toward the reunification of Parthenon Sculptures, Culture Minister Lina Mendoni said on Monday in response to a question in Parliament by Zoi Konstantopoulou, leader of the Course of Freedom party.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis expressed his annoyance on Monday evening over the last-minute cancellation of his meeting in London with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
SYRIZA leader Stefanos Kasselakis criticized Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday for remarks he made during a BBC television interview on Sunday concerning the return of the Parthenon Sculptures, currently displayed in the British Museum in London, to Greece.
Attracting investments and the repatriation of the Parthenon Sculptures take center stage in the agenda of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during his visit to London, where he is slated to meet with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Labour Party leader Keir Starmer, and key foreign investors.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said returning the Parthenon Marbles to Greece is about “reunification” not “ownership,” in an interview on the British state broadcaster BBC on Sunday.
The British Museum hopes it can reach an agreement with Greece over the Parthenon Sculptures “that requires no one to relinquish their claims,” the chairman of the institution’s board of trustees said on Wednesday night.
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