The Goodwill and Consistency of Türkiye in the Repatriation of Foreign Cultural Property: Case Studies of China and Iraq

There are many national and international legal frameworks for the protection of cultural property. However, even though states enact laws to protect cultural property, ratify multilateral conventions, and adopt bilateral agreements, the illicit trade in cultural property remains a problem. The return of any cultural property is a multi-layered process, and it is critical that a state’s policy towards displaced cultural property is consistent and based on goodwill to ensure international protection of cultural properties. This article elaborates on Türkiye’s goodwill and consistency in returning foreign cultural property to its country of origin. Two repatriation cases are examined to assess how Türkiye applies the principles of the 1970 UNESCO Convention and the bilateral agreements done accordingly regarding goodwill and consistency. The first case is, the Republic of Türkiye & the People’s Republic of China where the return was based on a bilateral agreement while the second case is the Republic of Türkiye & the Republic of Iraq where the repatriation took place based on diplomatic relations.