International treaty on combating the international trafficking of assets of national cultural significance, formulated and adopted during the 16th Paris General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1970, based on a recommendation made in the 1964 General Conference. It emerged in light of the widespread international smuggling of cultural property following the decolonisation of a number of states, and came into effect in 1972. The convention, while admitting the importance of cultural assets to the enlightenment of mankind as a whole, also recognises their significance to the history and identity of the nation where they originate; recommending measures for their protection and also the return of properties removed from a country by illegal means. India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Myanmar are among the 148 nations that have ratified the convention.