Two weeks before Greece celebrated its Bicentennial of its independence on March 25, 1821, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson renewed his country’s refusal to return marbles taken from the Parthenon in Greece.
In an interview published in the Greek newspaper “Ta Nia”, Johnson confirmed that the marbles that Athens has been demanding for decades have been “legally” acquired by Britain and owned by the British Museum.
The Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis formally requested that the marbles be borrowed for the occasion of his country’s celebration of independence.
The British Prime Minister, who regularly spends vacations in Greece at his father’s home, expressed his understanding of the strong feelings of the Greeks and the Prime Minister regarding this problem, but he did not leave any hope to return these ancient marbles that were taken from the Parthenon and transferred by British diplomat Lord Elgin to London in the early nineteenth century.
Johnson said, “The British government has maintained a firm position since a long time ago regarding these sculptures, which is that their acquisition was obtained legally by Lord Elgin, in line with the laws in force at the time … and British Museum’s commissioners have been the legal owners of them since they became in Possession. ”
Source: AFP