On Friday, King Charles III surprised some when he wore a tie decorated with the Greek flag while attending the COP28 climate summit. A few days ago, Britain** and Greece had a diplomatic dispute over the marble statues of the Parthenon (Parthenon).
The British monarch was supposed to be above politics, but many Greeks interpreted the tie as a gesture of support for their cause. Prince Charles wore the hat when he met with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the UN summit in Dubai and delivered a speech.
The king's late father, Prince Philip, was born into the Greek royal family, and Charles has deep roots in Greece.
Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the king's tie, which was paired with a blue and white pocket handkerchief. But they point out that Charles has worn the tie before, most recently last week.
Before that, Sunak canceled talks with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis scheduled for Tuesday, much to the surprise and annoyance of Athens. Sunak accused the Greek leader of trying to "grandstand" and reneging on his promise not to publicly demand the return of the ancient sculpture. Two centuries ago, the sculptures were stolen from the Parthenon in Athens and are now in the British Museum.
Greece** denied that Mitsotakis had agreed not to lobby for the return of the marbles during his visit.
British law prohibits the British Museum from returning the sculptures to Greece, but the leaders of the British Museum have already negotiated a compromise with Greece**, such as a long-term loan.
George Osborne, chairman of the museum's board of trustees, accused Sunak of "throwing a tantrum" over the artifacts and said talks would continue.
Sunak dismissed the remarks and said the marbles would not be lent unless Greece recognised the UK's "legitimate ownership", and Athens was unwilling to do so.