President Yoon wages full-scale charm offensive to promote Busan's bid for World Expo 2030

Diplomacy

Published: 26 Nov. 2023, 15:49 Updated: 26 Nov. 2023, 16:10

President Yoon wages full-scale charm offensive to promote Busan's bid for World Expo 2030

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, center right, and first lady Kim Keon Hee, center left, toast attendees during Korea's National Day reception at the Brongniart Palace in Paris on Friday as a part of efforts to drum up support for Busan’s World Expo 2030 bid. The event was attended by some 600 guests, including representatives of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), members of the diplomatic corps and business leaders. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol engaged in all-out diplomatic efforts in Paris to make a final pitch for hosting an "innovative and inclusive" World Expo 2030 in Busan in the days ahead of the secret ballot this week.

During his trip to Paris from Thursday to Saturday, Yoon had multiple opportunities, including lunch and dinner receptions, to meet with representatives from each Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) member country and explain in person the shared advantages of hosting the Expo in Busan.

His stop by France, following a state visit to Britain, comes as the 182 members of the Paris-headquartered BIE, the international body in charge of overseeing the World Expo, will secretly cast their ballots in the 173rd general assembly to choose the host city on Nov. 28.

According to the presidential office, the theme for the first dinner banquet for BIE members on Thursday was "cultural diversity," the luncheon on Friday was "development cooperation" and the Korea National Day dinner reception was "Korea's capabilities as a global pivotal nation."

Each event covered different themes and had different hosts representing Korea's various missions in Paris involved with the BIE and was an opportunity for Yoon to greet dignitaries from each member state.

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks at a Korean National Day reception at the Brongniart Palace in Paris on Friday as a part of efforts to drum up support for Busan’s World Expo 2030 bid. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee, center, and some 600 guests, including representatives of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), members of the diplomatic corps and business leaders, attend a Korean National Day reception at the Brongniart Palace in Paris on Friday as a part of efforts to drum up support for Busan’s World Expo 2030 bid. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

The Korea National Day reception on Friday, the highlight of the trip, was attended by some 600 guests, including BIE representatives, diplomats in Paris and heads of Korea's leading conglomerates such as SK, Samsung, Hyundai Motor, LG, Lotte and Hanwha, who have also taken part in Busan's Expo bid as a part of "One Team Korea."

"The Republic of Korea, which has blossomed into a liberal democracy and a market economy, now seeks to contribute responsibly to the international community under the national policy of freedom and solidarity," Yoon said at the reception arranged by the Korean Embassy in France at the Brongniart Palace.

He recalled South Korea's history of invasion by the communist North and the aid it received to recover from the devastating 1950-53 Korean War and achieve remarkable economic growth, eventually transitioning from a recipient nation to a donor country.

"By holding the 2030 World Expo in Busan, an international port city that is the gateway connecting the Eurasian continent to the Pacific Ocean, we hope to give back the help Korea has received from the international community," Yoon told the dignitaries.

The night's theme was "Transforming Our World, Navigating Toward a Better Future," which is also the Busan Expo theme.

Yoon stressed that Korea, as a "global pivotal state," plans to take the lead in human solidarity by protecting peace, embracing the weak and practicing sharing leading up to the World Expo 2030.

"We will do our best to make the Busan World Expo the most innovative and inclusive expo," Yoon said, asking attendees for their interest and support so that the expo can "become a platform of harmony and solidarity for future generations."

He concluded, "Busan is ready to be with you!"

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, center, speaks at a luncheon even in Paris on Friday as a part of efforts to promote Busan’s World Expo 2030 bid. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

At a dinner event hosted by the permanent delegation for Unesco for members of the diplomatic corps in Paris on Thursday, Yoon emphasized Busan could become a platform for solidarity for each country to showcase their cultures and traditions.

Yoon shared that Korea "intends to make a responsible contribution to the international community by hosting the 2030 Busan World Expo," said Lee Do-hoon, the presidential spokesman, in a statement on Friday.

Yoon also pledged the "largest aid package ever" leading up to a Busan Expo.

Yoon also stressed a vision of harmony and solidary in a luncheon hosted to raise awareness of Korea's efforts to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals, co-hosted by the Korean permanent representative to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (Koica).

He went on to pledge "customized development cooperation" and official development assistance (ODA) to serve "as an important foundation for promoting sustainable development in recipient countries."

Officials at the Korean dinner banquet Thursday said they were "touched" to see the president's direct involvement and "impressed to see the government and private sector working together as a team" in efforts to host the Expo, Lee said.

A senior presidential official said that at the receptions, "Yoon went around all the tables and greeted and chatted with each and every one of the attendees."

Yoon's return to Paris comes after just five months. It is rare for a president to visit a country more than once in a year.

In June, Yoon gave an English-language speech at the fourth presentation of the BIE general assembly in Paris, taking part in World Expo promotion efforts in person alongside field experts and Korean singer Psy, famous for his 2012 song "Gangnam Style."

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, and French President Emmanuel Macron head into a bilateral summit at Elysee Palace in Paris on Friday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

On Friday morning, Yoon held a bilateral summit over breakfast with French President Emmanuel Macron at Elysee Palace, discussing cooperation in future cutting-edge industries, climate change, a coal phase-out and energy transition and renewable energy development, said the presidential office.

Since his inauguration last year, Yoon has held over 150 summits with 96 countries, according to the presidential office.

"Over the past year and six months, our government, businesses and people have all worked together toward one goal," Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo said in a briefing in Paris Friday. "The Busan Expo united Korea. Additionally, the Busan Expo served as a catalyst to dramatically expand the scope of our diplomacy."

Beating the odds by joining in the bid later than its competitors, Korea's Busan is in a fierce three-way race against Saudi Arabia's Riyadh and Italy's Rome.

The BIE stipulates that a country must gather two-thirds of the votes cast to win the election if there are more than two candidates. If none of the three candidates earns two-thirds of the votes cast in the first round, the third-place candidate is eliminated, and the two leading candidates will move on to a second round of voting.

Many observers point to a high likelihood that the three-way vote could lead to a runoff race, likely between Korea and Saudi Arabia.

In the case of a runoff, the host country can be elected by a simple majority.

"I believe Korea could make dramatic a reversal in the runoff race," a government official familiar with the Expo voting told the Korea JoongAng Daily regarding the atmosphere at the BIE scene in the days ahead of the secret ballot.

On the day of the general assembly, the competitors will make a fifth and final 20-minute presentation in a last appeal to host the World Expo.

Government officials revealed last week that in the ballot, Busan is candidate "No. 1," Rome "No. 2" and Riyadh "No. 3."

Korea's government and business leaders in turn have been promoting "Busan is No. 1" in the final days until the vote.

"Rather than being a stage for competition to show off our status, it will be an all-out effort to promote Busan as a communication expo, where all participants can freely showcase their unique culture and traditions, and as a venue that connects the future and present generations," Kim Eun-hye, senior presidential secretary for press affairs, said Friday.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, second from right, and first lady Kim Keon Hee, right, greet officials after their return from a weeklong trip to Britain and France at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi, on Sunday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

On Sunday, Yoon and first lady Kim Keon Hee returned to Korea, wrapping up a weeklong trip to Europe, which also earlier took them on a state visit to Britain, which produced the "Downing Street Accord," elevating bilateral relations to a global strategic partnership.

Government efforts to promote Busan's bid continue this week, with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo departing for Paris on Sunday for a five-day visit to continue meeting with BIE delegates and oversee the voting process, according to his office.

This comes as more countries openly show support for Korea's bid. Japan decided to support Busan's bid to host World Expo 2030, reported Japanese daily Yomiuri Shimbun on Sunday.

It was reported that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida informally delivered his intent to support Korea's bid to host the 2030 Expo in Busan to Yoon during their bilateral summit in September in New Delhi on the sidelines of a G20 gathering.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]