Why Sunak refused to meet with Mitsotakis

Rishi Sunak has opened a Pandora’s box following the diplomatic misdeed he committed by canceling a meeting with Kyriakos Mitsotakis. He is currently being “vindicated” by the Tories and the British Museum itself.

The cancellation of the Sunak-Mitsotakis meeting by the British Prime Minister has other “readings”: Rishi Sunak decided to take this action a few days before the Mitsotakis-Erdogan meeting in Athens, thus showing his support for Turkey.

According to a statement from a British Museum spokesperson to the NEA, “the Museum’s position remains unchanged. Discussions with Greece regarding the Parthenon Partnership are ongoing and constructive.”

It should be noted that in November 2021, negotiations began between the Greek government and the president of the British Museum, who expressed hope that the museum could “reach an agreement with Greece” that would result in the temporary return of the Parthenon sculptures in exchange for antiquities that were never exhibited In Great Britain.

Six in ten Britons disagree with the cancellation of the meeting between Sunak and Mitsotakis

The British Prime Minister was sharply criticized by both citizens and the country’s political leadership. Many Britons called his action weak, rude and politically inexpedient.

According to a YouGov poll, 66% of Britons strongly disagree with Risi Sunak’s decision to cancel his meeting with Kyriakos Mitsotakis, and only 11% think canceling the meeting was correct.

“Prime Minister Rishi Sunak canceled a meeting with the Greek Prime Minister that was due to take place in London because the Greek Prime Minister in an interview repeated his country’s desire to return the Parthenon marbles to Greece. Do you think Downing Street got it right or wrong decision to cancel this meeting?”

The British Museum in London houses the Parthenon Sculptures (also known as the Elgin Marbles), a set of classical Greek sculptures taken from the Parthenon in Athens 200 years ago by Lord Elgin. Some believe Britain should return the marbles to Greece, while others believe they should remain here. Do you personally think Britain should return the Elgin Marbles to Greece or keep them in Britain?”

In this question, 49% (one in two Britons) think the Parthenon sculptures should be returned to Greece, while 15% want them to remain in Britain. 26% do not object to any of the options, and 10% responded that they “don’t know.”

Chronicle of the conflict between Athens and London

It all started with an interview with the BBC by Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in which he mentioned the Parthenon marbles: “They would look better in the Acropolis Museum. It’s not a question of returning, the sculptures belong to Greece and were stolen. For us, it’s a question of reunification, where you can better admire these important monuments.” And he asked: “If we cut off half of the Mona Lisa and half ended up in the Louvre, what would happen?”

After this statement, the British side demanded a change in the schedule and proposed a meeting between the Greek Prime Minister and the British Deputy Prime Minister. The Greek side rejected this proposal because they believed that the British Prime Minister did not want the issue of sculptures to be raised at the meeting.

The next day, Downing Street leaked information that “the Greeks had broken their promise not to raise the issue of the Parthenon sculptures.” After this claim was made and the BBC article was published, a Greek government spokesman said that the UK had not been given any guarantee that there would be no debate about the Parthenon Marbles.

It’s not about the Elgin marbles, it’s about Turkey

The cancellation of the Sunak-Mitsotakis meeting by the British Prime Minister has other “readings”: Rishi Sunak decided to take this action a few days before the Mitsotakis-Erdogan meeting in Athens, thus showing his support for Turkey.

Just five days ago, the UK and Turkey concluded a defense agreement that directly contradicts the national security of Greece, and at the same time, negotiations are underway between London and Ankara about the possible sale of used Eurofighters to Turkey, while even the US does not want to sell F- fighters to Turkey. 16 Vipers.

Of course, this could happen in any case, since Turkey is an extremely important ally for the United States, so Americans constantly tolerate Ankara’s extremely offensive behavior in almost any situation.

The US is outraged by the choice of Rishi Sunak as David Cameron’s new secretary of state, whom former President Barack Obama called “crazy” when he told him of his intentions for a referendum on whether Britain should remain in EU. It should also be added that Cameron has always been… pro-Turkish.

In this situation, the Elgin marbles most likely became just a pretext, and the reasons for the refusal to meet are much deeper. Britain is trying to return to the list of “World Players” after many years of oblivion behind the back of “Big Brother” from across the ocean, and rapprochement with Turkey is one of the elements of this game.

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