UNESCO’s reaction was triggered by the new provocative statements by Turkish President Erdogan about his intention to turn Hagia Sophia into a mosque in Constantinople.
In particular, UNESCO sources cited by the Greek media put a brake on the aspirations of the Turkish president to change the name and status of Hagia Sophia.
As they put it, “all decisions regarding the implementation of the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, are taken by the World Heritage Committee. If a country has signed the aforementioned convention and wishes to change the name of a monument, it will have to submit its proposal for approval to the Committee.”
The same source said that “UNESCO is responsible to prepare for the work of the committee, but can not predict its decisions in any case.”
