Local government leaders pledge support for Busan bid

President Yoon Suk Yeol urged both the local and central governments to work together to become "one team" and mobilize all their capabilities to support Korea's bid for the 2030 World Expo.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, meets with Patrick Specht, president of the Administration and Budget Committee of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) and other members of the visiting delegation at Nurimaru APEC House in Busan on Thursday. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

Korea's governors, mayors and local district and council leaders adopted a joint resolution Thursday pledging their support for Busan's bid to host the 2030 World Expo.

The Governors Association of the Republic of Korea, National Association of Mayors in Korea, the Metropolitan, Provincial Council Chairs Association and the National Association of Local Council Chairmen pledged to actively take the lead in driving up support across Korea's 17 provinces and cities for the expo bid ahead of a meeting on regional cooperation presided over by President Yoon Suk Yeol in Busan.

During the meeting held at the Bexco convention center, Yoon urged both the local and central governments to work together to become "one team" and mobilize all their capabilities to support Korea's bid for the 2030 World Expo.

"This is not just a task for Busan," said Yoon, "but a task for the Republic of Korea and all of its cities and provinces."

He stressed that hosting the expo will "serve as a driving force for balanced regional development and a leap forward as a global pivotal country."

The meeting, the fourth of its kind, was attended by Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and other central government officials and leaders of provincial and municipal governments and comes as a visiting delegation of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) wrapped up its weeklong on-site inspection of Korea's expo bid.

On Monday evening, Yoon held a banquet for the eight-member BIE team, who arrived in Seoul on Sunday, before they headed to Busan on Tuesday.

Yoon then instructed the governors and mayors of Korea's 17 provinces and cities to "actively utilize your international networks and negotiation channels to make efforts to win the hearts of the 171 BIE member countries."

He stressed that World Expo 2030 could be an opportunity for Korea to "create global innovations by sharing our development experience with the international community and present a vision for the global agenda, including climate change and the digital transformation."

Yoon described the world expo as "an economic and cultural Olympics that showcases the capabilities of the host country."

President Yoon Suk Yeol, center, watches as the heads of the Governors Association of the Republic of Korea, the National Association of Mayors in Korea, the Metropolitan, Provincial Council Chairs Association and the National Association of Local Council Chairmen read out a joint resolution pledging support from local leaders for Busan’s World Expo 2030 bid ahead of a meeting on regional cooperation at Bexco in Busan on Thursday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

At the beginning of the meeting, the leaders of the four major regional associations, including North Gyeongsang Gov. Lee Cheol-woo, president of the Governors Association of the Republic of Korea, announced the joint resolution promising local government support to create an atmosphere of nationwide support for Busan's expo bid.

The resolution stated that the World Expo would be a "driving force that will accelerate balanced national development by spreading Korea's national capabilities to the world" and contribute to regional development through an economic ripple effect and job creation.

The regional leaders promised to drum up localized diplomatic capabilities to appeal to BIE member countries, work towards balanced national development and to create a model for local and central government cooperation.

Referring to Yoon's regional cooperation meeting, Kim Eun-hye, senior presidential secretary for press affairs, said in a briefing in Yongsan, central Seoul on Thursday that it "conveyed the support from all regions of Korea regardless of whether it is at the central or provincial level, ruling or opposition parties or in the private or public sector."

Yoon later made a surprise appearance at the farewell dinner for the BIE delegation team at the Nurimaru APEC House in Busan Thursday evening.

"We will try our best to hold responsibility and be able to contribute at any time," said Yoon, noting that Korea is always ready to "share the grace and benefit we were shown in the past with the international community" if given a chance to host the expo.

Yoon told the BIE delegation that he hopes they will "leave with great memories here, and above all, wrap up this trip successfully and in a very good condition."

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