On the morning of November 21, 2025, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet posted a message celebrating and welcoming the return of Khmer art treasures following sustained negotiations with Hungarian national István Zelnik and the Hungarian government.
Hun Manet wrote:
Congratulations and welcome home to the Khmer art treasures returning to Cambodia!
Following the Royal Government's rigorous policy, the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, acting as its direct implementing arm, worked hard in negotiations with Hungarian national István Zelnik and the Hungarian government to bring Khmer art treasures back to their homeland.
The Khmer art treasures include 183 pieces of Khmer silk textiles and prehistoric objects such as coins, beads, jewellery and utensils made of precious metals, bronze, stone and fired clay, as well as important collections of stone and bronze objects from the pre-Angkorian and Angkorian periods. All are legacies left by Khmer ancestors for future generations, comparable to the return of the souls of Khmer ancestors.
By: ចិន្តា ទីទិ
