A delegation from the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) has begun inspecting South Korea's bid to host the 2030 World Expo in the southeastern port city of Busan.
The eight-member team led by Patrick Specht, president of the BIE Administration and Budget Committee, arrived in Seoul on Sunday for a six-day visit, during which they will visit the candidate city and meet with government officials, political and business leaders, and key figures involved in the bid project.
Busan, South Korea's second-largest city located 325 kilometers southeast of Seoul, is competing with Italy's Rome, Ukraine's Odesa and Saudi Arabia's Riyadh to host the fair overseen by the BIE. The Paris-based organization is scheduled to announce the winner in November.
The BIE's Enquiry Missions completed inspections of Odesa and Riyadh last month, and plan to visit Rome later this month. Their findings will be released to all 171 member states during a general assembly in June.
On Monday morning, the BIE officials met with Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Lee Chang-yang and received the first presentation from the bid committee.
They attended a luncheon hosted by Chey Tae-won, chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and co-chair of the bid committee, and are scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, another co-chair of the committee, National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo and Foreign Minister Park Jin.
The delegation will travel to Busan on Tuesday, where they will first visit Eulsukdo Ecological Park and then receive the second bid presentation from the committee. They later will attend a dinner hosted by Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon.
On Wednesday, they will inspect Busan North Port, the proposed expo site, where the committee will give the third presentation using 3D video technology.
The BIE mission will attend a luncheon with civil society supporters and then meet with = Oceans and Fisheries Minister Cho Seung-hwan, whose ministry oversees the port. They will attend a cultural performance in the evening.
They will receive the final presentation from the committee Thursday, and visit the U.N. Memorial Cemetery, a burial ground for U.N. Command service members killed during the 1950-53 Korean War.
They will have lunch together with people in their 20s and 30s, and attend a farewell dinner with the bid committee and key figures from Busan that night.
Source: Yonhap News Agency