BIE Refuses Secretary-General's Q-Sign, Broadcasts Video
President Yoon Arrives Early at General Assembly to Wait On Site
The Presidential Office clarified on the 21st (local time) that the controversy over President Yoon Suk-yeol being late to the 4th competitive presentation (PT) for hosting the International Bureau of Expositions (BIE) 2030 World Expo is "a distortion completely contrary to the facts."
A key official from the Presidential Office held a briefing at the press room set up in Paris, France, in the morning and said, "Some agitators, unable to obscure the essence, are making peripheral criticisms, which is deplorable."
During the PT held the previous day in Issy-les-Moulineaux, France, when Korea's turn was not called, a video of Korea's PT was broadcast live, showing President Yoon moving to the podium and BIE Secretary-General Dimitri Kerkentzes waving his hand.
The official stated, "The BIE afternoon session was scheduled to start at 3 p.m., but perhaps due to the delay in the morning session, it began at 3:06 p.m., and Saudi Arabia's PT started then. Before that time, President Yoon had already arrived at the general assembly hall with his party and was waiting in the waiting room. The claim that he was late is simply nonsense."
Regarding the video being played twice, he said, "(It is true that) the video was played twice. The video was played before the (Korean PT) time, and the Secretary-General was also embarrassed and made an X sign," adding, "Later, it was found that the Secretary-General did not give the cue sign, but the technical director just played it."
He continued, "When asked why the technical director played it, he said, 'I thought if the video came out quickly, the venue would be organized faster and the PT could start sooner.' Although it is not a convincing explanation, that was his justification."
The official emphasized, "This happened within the BIE and has nothing to do with us. The conversation between the Secretary-General and the technical director is also in the video, so anyone can clearly see that this is fake news."
He added, "Although the general assembly was held yesterday, until yesterday the chair of the assembly was Ambassador Choi Jae-cheol, the Permanent Representative to France, who knows best how the BIE general assembly operates," and quoted Ambassador Choi's explanation: "'The President actually arrived early,' and 'Since it is unusual for the head of state to attend the PT, the BIE courteously hosted President Yoon, guided him to the waiting room, and followed all protocol procedures. There is no reason to doubt this at all.'"
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