An EU document that was leaked, left open the possibility fro Brussels to force the British government to hand back such artefacts as the sculptures (wrongly referred as the Elgin Marbles) which are currently at the British Museum.
The draft of the 27 EU nations’ position on negotiations with Britain on their future relationship, which was seen by Reuters, seeks the “return or restitution of unlawfully removed cultural objects to their countries of origin”.
The document did not specify any cultural objects. However, an EU diplomat said the line was added at the request of Greece, with support from Italy.
The document suggested parties – meaning the United Kingdom and European Union member states – would need to address “issues” relating to “unlawfully removed cultural objects.”
These were understood to include the ancient marble sculptures, which Greece insists were stolen by British diplomat Lord Elgin from the Parthenon temple in Athens more than 200 years ago
However, according to British media, a spokesperson for the UK government drew a line at the prospect of handing back the 5th century Sculptures.
“The UK’s position on the Parthenon sculptures remains unchanged – they are legal responsibility of the British Museum. That is not up for discussion as part of our trade negotiations”, said the spokesperson.
A senior EU source confirmed to “The Times” that Cyprus, Spain and Italy – countries which are equally concerned about trade in stolen antiquities – had joined the Greek government in pushing for the “cultural objects” clause.
According to the source, “it is not specifically about the Elgin Marbles but of course the claim by Greece is longstanding and the Greek ambassador asked for it”.
