As part of the 6th Greece–United States Strategic Dialogue, taking place in Athens, Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni and U.S. Under Secretary of State for Education and Culture, Catherine Dillon, in the presence of the U.S. Ambassador to Greece, Kimberly Guilfoyle, signed the renewal of the Memorandum of Understanding to continue imposing import restrictions on certain categories of Greek archaeological and ethnological material for another five years, until 2031.

The memorandum, which has been in effect since 2011, has indeed yielded significant results in combating the illicit trafficking of cultural property and in its repatriation to Greece. During its five-year implementation period, 2021–2026, 425 cultural artifacts were returned to Greece, 98 of which were returned under the provisions of the Memorandum. At the same time, on September 21, 2026, 15 additional Greek antiquities were handed over by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and the Antiquities Trafficking Unit.

The Minister of Culture, Lina Mendoni, stated: “Today, we renewed the Memorandum of Cooperation on the protection of Greek cultural heritage and the fight against the illicit trafficking of cultural property. This has been a particularly successful collaboration, which has contributed decisively to the return of numerous and significant cultural artifacts to Greece, as well as to strengthening cooperation between the competent authorities of the two countries. The Ministry of Culture, wishing to highlight the significant achievement represented by these repatriations, is planning to hold an exhibition next year at the National Archaeological Museum featuring some of the objects returned from the United States. The exhibition will be accompanied by various initiatives to inform and raise public awareness about this important issue, which has taken on global proportions. We also discussed with Ms. Dillon our joint events to mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of American Independence. Emphasis will be placed on highlighting the relationship between the American and Greek Revolutions, as well as the significant contribution of American philhellenism to the struggle for Greek independence. Finally, we discussed opportunities for cultural cooperation in light of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. The Ministry of Culture intends, among other things, to loan sculptures to the Getty Museum in Los Angeles and to contribute in various ways to the realization of a cultural Olympiad. “We will continue to work with both the State Department and the U.S. Embassy in Athens to ensure that the ideas we discussed today yield tangible results.”

 People-to-People meeting

The signing of the renewed agreement was preceded by a meeting, held as part of the “People-to-People” initiative, attended by Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni, Minister of Education and Religious Affairs Sofia Zacharaki, and Deputy Minister of Sports Yiannis Vroutsis; and, on the U.S. side, Deputy Secretary of State for Education and Culture Catherine Dillon.

The meeting took place in a particularly warm and constructive atmosphere, reaffirming the close ties and the steadfast commitment of Greece and the United States to further strengthening their cooperation in the fields of culture, education, and sports.