Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.
Hyundai Motor Group chairman seeks African, Caribbean, Pacific support for Busan's Expo bid
Chung Euisun, sixth from right in the first row, chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, and Cho Tae-yong, fifth from right in the first row, Korea's ambassador to the United States, pose with ambassadors from the Marshall Islands, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Malawi, Mali, Togo, Bahamas, Guyana, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Central African Republic, Burundi and Mauritius at the Embassy of Korea in the U.S. in Washington, D.C., Tuesday (local time). Courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group
By Baek Byung-yeul
By Baek Byung-yeul
Chung Euisun, chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, asked ambassadors from African, Caribbean and Pacific nations to support Busan's bid to host World Expo 2030 in a meeting in the United States, according to the automotive giant, Wednesday.
The chairman joined the event held at the office of the Embassy of Korea in the U.S. in Washington, D.C., to strengthen cooperation with African, Caribbean and Pacific countries and explain why the Korean port city is trying to host the international event in 2030.
Invited countries include Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Burundi and Central African Republic from Africa; Guyana, Barbados, Bahamas, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda from the Caribbean and the Marshall Islands from the Pacific.
Chung expressed his gratitude to the ambassadors of each country and tried to form a consensus on Busan's bid to host the World Expo. Chang Jae-hoon, CEO of Hyundai Motor, Jose Munoz, chief operating officer of Hyundai Motor, and Shin Jai-won, president of Hyundai Motor Group, also joined the event.
“The world is facing complex crises and challenges such as climate change and widening gaps between countries. To cope with them, we need to make various kinds of efforts and the Busan Expo, which is being prepared under the theme of 'World Transformation and Voyage to a Better Future,' can be a good solution,” Chung said during the event.
“Korea can serve as a bridge between emerging and advanced countries based on its experience in overcoming many crises and achieving economic growth in a short period of time,” Chung added. “By sharing Korea's experience and technology, I am confident that we will be able to play a pivotal role in international cooperation in solving global challenges.”
To help the Korean port city become the host city of the 2030 event, which will be decided in November, Hyundai Motor Group has promoted the city's bid and the strengths of the city to high-ranking officials from more than 20 countries.
The chairman met with the prime ministers of the Czech Republic and Slovakia respectively last October while CEOs of Hyundai Motor and Kia visited the Bahamas, Paraguay, Chile, South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Serbia, Albania and Greece in 2022.
Cho Tae-yong, South Korea's ambassador to the U.S., also asked for their support to help Busan host the international event. “Busan is a well-prepared international city with a lot of experience in hosting large-scale global events. The city will present a future vision for marine and climate change in 2030,” he said.
The automotive group added that the chairman also shared his thoughts on the future of cars at a time when the industry is experiencing rapid change due to climate change and the emergence of electric vehicles (EVs).
Chung also introduced Hyundai Motor Group's efforts in nurturing the global EV ecosystem by supplying high-quality eco-friendly EVs and building infrastructure for EV charging.