Regulation (EU) 2019/880 and the 1970 UNESCO Convention – A Note on the Interplay between the EU and UNESCO Import Regimes

The 1970 UNESCO Convention is the key international instrument to protect movable cultural heritage. States Parties to this treaty undertake to adopt measures to prohibit and prevent the illicit trade in such objects, as well as those designed to stop the import of unlawfully exported cultural goods. The EU, as an important UNESCO partner and a powerful regional organization, has been urged since the 2000s by many international actors as well as its own institutions to curb the illicit transfer of cultural goods within its boundaries, especially in the light of the influx of cultural material illicitly removed from conflict-ridden territories. Regulation (EU) 2019/880 on the introduction and the import of cultural goods may be seen as providing a long-awaited legal framework that would promote and strengthen the operation of 1970 UNESCO Convention, both in Europe and globally. Thus, there is a significant interplay between the UNESCO and the EU cultural goods import regimes, which this note endeavours to analyse.