Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, who was in Budapest Thursday for a meeting with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijjarto, was handed 412 artifacts the country seized from a smuggler six years ago.
“We are excited to have them back in Turkey and I thank you on behalf of my country,” Çavuşoğlu told Szijjarto as the two ministers posed next to the artifacts.
The head of a Roman-era marble statue, marble figurines, coins and several other ancient artifacts were found in the vehicle of a Turkish citizen stopped by Hungarian customs officers in June 2015. The Culture and Tourism Ministry had launched a legal bid for the return of artifacts to Turkey while Turkish archaeology experts analyzed the artifacts and found that all originated from Turkey. A lengthy legal process was accelerated in January after new talks between Turkish and Hungarian officials. The artifacts, which will be brought to Turkey by a Foreign Ministry plane, will be exhibited at the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in the capital Ankara.
Turkey and Hungary maintain close ties, dating back to Ottoman times, though the relations have boosted further in recent years.
