Greeks broke promise not to raise Parthenon Sculptures, No 10 says
BBC News says Downing Street believed it had assurances from the Greek government that their prime minister would not raise the subject of the Parthenon Sculptures on his visit to the UK.
Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis told the BBC on Sunday that having some of the treasures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, in London and others in Athens was like cutting the Mona Lisa in half.
No 10 then cancelled PM Rishi Sunak’s meeting with Mr Mitsotakis.
Labour has branded the row “pathetic”.
The sculptures are a collection of ancient Greek treasures from the Parthenon which were taken and brought to the UK by British diplomat Lord Elgin in the early 19th Century. They are now in the British Museum.
Both Greece and the UK have long-standing positions on the sculptures, but diplomatic talks were expected to focus on other topics.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-67551732