Signing of Business Agreement at Osaka City Hall on the Afternoon of the 24th
Deputy Mayor Lee Seong-gwon and Deputy Mayor Takahashi Tooru
Busan City signed a mutual cooperation agreement with Osaka City, Japan, for the successful hosting of the 2025 Japan World Expo and the attraction of the 2030 World Expo to Busan.
This cooperation agreement was proposed during a meeting between Lee Seong-gwon, Deputy Mayor for Economic Affairs, and Takahashi Tooru (高橋 徹), Deputy Mayor of Osaka City, during Lee’s business trip to Japan on February 2.
At this meeting, Deputy Mayor Lee listened to Osaka City’s strategies for responding to the onsite inspection by the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) and the preparation status for the 2025 Japan World Expo, which Osaka successfully secured. He also explained the attractiveness and outstanding hosting capabilities of Busan, the candidate city for the event. Deputy Mayor Takahashi strongly agreed that Busan possesses sufficient capabilities and appeal.
The signing ceremony took place on the afternoon of the 24th at Osaka City Hall, with Deputy Mayor Lee Seong-gwon and Deputy Mayor Takahashi Tooru (高橋 徹) personally attending and signing the agreement.
Through this cooperation agreement, ▲ Osaka City will share strategies for responding to the BIE regarding the attraction of the 2030 World Expo to Busan, provide information on the preparation status of the World Expo, support site inspections for the event, and jointly promote various cooperative projects with Busan City. ▲ Busan City will promote various activities to ensure the successful hosting of the 2025 Japan World Expo.
In addition to Deputy Mayor Lee Seong-gwon, reporters from KNN and Busan MBC accompanied the signing ceremony for coverage.
The press team arrived in Japan two days before the signing ceremony to cover the event and conduct interviews with officials from Osaka City Hall and the Manpaku Promotion Bureau. They plan to convey the practical experiences and preparation status they learned to the people of the Republic of Korea.
Deputy Mayor Lee Seong-gwon stated, “This agreement will enable Busan and Osaka to mutually cooperate in attracting and hosting the World Expo, which is expected to positively influence the solidification of support momentum within Japan for Busan’s bid for the 2030 World Expo.” He added, “Especially, resolving conflicts and fostering harmony between Korea and Japan aligns with the spirit of the Expo and will send a positive signal to BIE member countries.”
“Following the hosting of the 2025 Japan World Expo, if the 2030 World Expo is also held in Busan, it is expected to generate a significant synergistic effect. This will be an important momentum to develop sustainable prosperity and a future-oriented relationship between the two countries,” he said. “Given the long-standing friendly relationship between the two cities, we hope mutual visits will increase, and we will strengthen cooperative projects in culture and tourism, which have been subdued due to COVID-19.”
Deputy Mayor Takahashi of Osaka City said, “The hosting of the 2025 Japan World Expo will be a significant opportunity to overcome various challenges within our country and make a leap forward.” He added, “Although Osaka City cannot directly express support for the World Expo bid, which is under government jurisdiction, we highly evaluate Busan’s hosting capabilities as a friendly cooperative city and support Busan’s bid more than anyone else. If Busan succeeds in attracting the 2030 World Expo, exchanges and cooperation between Osaka and Busan will expand further, positively impacting the friendly cooperation between the two countries.”
Since Mayor Park Hyung-joon of Busan’s visit to Japan in October last year, Deputy Mayor Lee has frequently visited Japan to reaffirm the support base and strengthen the momentum for support. He has actively promoted Busan’s attractiveness and the thorough preparation status of Busan City and the government, requesting active support from key Japanese government and parliamentary figures, and has engaged in vigorous promotional and negotiation activities for the bid.
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