Also scheduled to visit Vietnam as a state guest
President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-he left for France on June 19 to promote Pusan's bid to host the 2030 World Expo. President Yoon is also scheduled to visit Vietnam as a state guest.
Yoon will attend a general assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), the international body in charge of overseeing the World Expo, on June 20 and 21, with an English speech planned for South Korea's presentation the first day.
The assembly will be held in Issy-les-Moulineaux, a commune in the southwestern suburban area of Paris, and bring together delegates from all 179 member states of the BIE.
During a cabinet meeting, Yoon said, "All sectors, including the government and private sector, have made all-out efforts as one team in order to host the 2030 World Expo in Busan, and every time I have met with foreign leaders, I too have requested their support," Yoon said during a Cabinet meeting last week.
He added, "The presentation at the general assembly attended by all 179 member states will be an opportunity to show the distinct vision of the Busan Expo."
Hosting the 2030 World Expo was one of President Yoon's campaign pledges and also included among his administration's key tasks.
Yoon has used almost every diplomatic opportunity to seek support for Busan in competition against three other candidate cities -- Rome, Italy; Odesa, Ukraine; and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.