The president of the British Museum told his colleagues that he was reassured (regarding the talks about somehow having the Parthenon Marbles in the Acropolis museum) because Mr. Mitsotakis, the Prime Minister of Greece, who is personally handling the negotiations for the marbles, has not yet attacked the British Museum for the thefts, writes the Financial Times.

The source from the British Museum cited by the Financial Times says that "you can read a lot in silence". "There was a significant limitation at the heart of the Greek state." They believe that this silence was a sign that Athens believes that an agreement is close.

The newspaper quotes a statement from a Greek government official who said that the events at the British Museum are being closely monitored and that he, like others in the cultural community, is shocked by the magnitude of the theft.

"These issues are not directly related to our campaign for our legal right to have the Parthenon Marbles returned to Greece, which continues unabated."

President George Osborne confirmed on Saturday that discussions on a partnership with Athens were "ongoing and constructive."

The British newspaper often hosts opinion pieces to shut down any discussion of the return of the marbles.

Labor MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy told the Guardian that the thefts exposed the British Museum's "ridiculous" attitude toward the return of the marbles.