Park Jin and Bang Moon-kyu Bow Heads After Expo Defeat: "Could Not Predict Large Vote Gap"

Narrow Defeat of Busan Expo by 90 Votes
National Assembly's Industry and Foreign Affairs Committees Launch Intense Criticism
Diplomatic and Intelligence Limitations Exposed

Minister Bang Moon-gyu of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is adjusting his glasses while attending the National Assembly's Trade, Industry, Energy, Small and Medium Venture Business Committee audit held on the 10th. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

There is growing criticism of the government’s responsibility following the failure to secure the 2030 Busan World Expo. In related parliamentary standing committees, remarks were made criticizing the government’s weak diplomatic capabilities, intelligence, and misjudgment of the situation. Foreign Minister Park Jin and Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Bang Moon-kyu each bowed their heads, saying they “feel a sense of responsibility” and “did not predict the margin of votes,” respectively. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who is reported to have returned on the morning of the 30th (Korean time) after attending the International Bureau of Expositions (BIE) General Assembly, has remained silent without any official schedule in the afternoon.

Minister Bang Moon-kyu: "Did Not Predict Such a Large Vote Margin"

Minister Bang Moon-kyu attended the full meeting of the Industry, Trade, and Energy Committee on the 30th and said, “Although the public supported us, it is regrettable that we did not achieve our goal,” adding, “We predicted it would be difficult, but we did not anticipate such a large margin of votes.” Foreign Minister Park Jin also said at the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee full meeting, “It is regrettable and I feel a sense of responsibility,” but added, “Our diplomatic network has expanded, economic security has been strengthened, and the status of our national power has risen, so I hope we can learn from this failure and realize the dream that Busan could not achieve.”

At the International Bureau of Expositions (BIE) General Assembly held in Paris, France on the 28th (local time), South Korea received only 29 votes, suffering a crushing defeat to Saudi Arabia, which received 119 votes. The government’s forecast, which predicted a “neck-and-neck close contest,” was rendered meaningless by the large vote gap. Criticism arose that the strategies of “blocking two-thirds of Saudi votes” in the first round and “absorbing Italian votes” in the second round were ineffective. The 90-vote gap with Saudi Arabia was seen as revealing the limits of the government’s diplomatic capabilities.

Park Jin, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who has been subject to replacement rumors amid responsibility issues for the Busan Expo, is responding to reporters' questions as he enters the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 30th. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

Park Jin: "Reflecting on Not Meeting Expectations"

In response to criticism that the analysis of the situation was off, Minister Park said, “There were countries supporting Busan. They expressed support both in writing and verbally,” adding, “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has overseas missions and conducted the bid campaign targeting foreign central governments, so we analyzed all information and made objective and careful judgments, sharing them within government agencies and the bid committee. I wouldn’t say it was perfect, but we cross-checked two or three times.” He added, “I think we must humbly reflect on the fact that we did not meet the expectations we had.”

However, criticism was strong across party lines in the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee. Yoon Sang-hyun, a member of the People Power Party, called it an “unexpected crushing defeat,” saying, “We did our best, and the highest official in the government worked hard, so we should reflect on whether the belief that the bid was possible during the policy decision process became ‘groupthink.’” Ha Tae-kyung also pointed out, “We failed to access key information about the opposing country and misjudged whether that country would vote for us or not.”

Park Byeong-seok of the Democratic Party questioned, “I wonder whether the various matters reported to the president are based on truth and facts.” Kim Sang-hee of the same party claimed, “The president going all the way to France at the last minute and making it seem like something would be achieved was nothing less than thoroughly deceiving the public.”

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo held a press conference on the 28th (local time) at the Palais des Congr?s on the outskirts of Paris, France, after Busan was eliminated in the vote to select the host city for the 2030 World Expo at the 173rd General Assembly of the International Bureau of Expositions (BIE). Photo by the Prime Minister's Office

Meanwhile, as President Yoon Seok-youl has announced a major cabinet reshuffle, there are rumors of replacing Foreign Minister Park Jin in connection with the Expo bid failure. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who served as co-chairman of the bid committee, is also expected to face responsibility in the reshuffle. In a public address on the 29th of last month regarding the failure to secure the Busan Expo, President Yoon said, “It seems the predictions were off,” and “Please consider all of this as my own shortcomings.” When asked by reporters about the replacement rumors at the National Assembly that day, Minister Park refrained from commenting, saying, “I do not think it is appropriate to discuss my position here.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.