Return of dozens of ancient artifacts from Switzerland to Türkiye just 'a start': Turkish ambassador

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) - The return of 37 smuggled ancient artifacts from Switzerland to their home country, Türkiye, is just "a start," Türkiye's ambassador to Bern told Anadolu in an interview.

"This is a start, and the Swiss side has conveyed this to us. I believe that our cooperation in this field will continue to increase in the coming period," said Emine Ece Ozbayoglu Acarsoy.

Underlining that Switzerland is a "big market" for historical artifacts, Ozbayoglu Acarsoy said that Swiss officials stated that they want the market to remain "clean."

"The Swiss authorities have stated that they will immediately send any artifacts identified as belonging to Türkiye. It is out of the question for illegal artifacts originating from our country to enter or stay here," she added.

She emphasized that the return of historical artifacts creates a "positive atmosphere" for the relations between the two countries.

"This is an area where we have demonstrated good cooperation and it shows how much both sides value cultural assets," she said. "We hope that the cooperation in the cultural field will spread to other areas."

The ambassador also said there are no historical artifacts belonging to Switzerland in Türkiye.

Asked whether Bern knows when these artifacts entered Switzerland, Swiss official Fabienne Baraga told Anadolu that her team "does not know" when these kinds of artifacts came to Switzerland as the artifacts only come to the Federal Office of Culture after a criminal proceeding is completed.

Baraga, who heads a specialized body on the international transfer of cultural property in the Federal Office of Culture, also highlighted the good cooperation between Türkiye and Switzerland.

"Our cooperation is excellent in the cultural areas," she said. "Every cooperation in a specific field positively impacts the overall relationship."

A ceremony was held Wednesday marking the ancient artifacts' return at the Turkish Embassy in Bern, with Swiss officials attending.

The artifacts were mostly bronze objects from the Kingdom of Urartu, which ruled lands centered in present-day eastern Türkiye between the 9th and 7th centuries BC.

A 6,000-year-old Kusura-type idol is the oldest among the 37 artifacts.

The return of the artifacts occurred under a bilateral agreement signed on Nov. 15 last year that aims to prevent the illicit transfer, import and repatriation of cultural properties.