Prime Minister Han Duck-soo departed for France on Sunday on a four-nation trip including stops in Denmark, Croatia and Greece to promote South Korea's bid to host the 2030 World Expo in the southeastern city of Busan.
The weeklong trip comes as South Korea has been stepping up its campaign to host the event about 50 days before the Bureau of International des Expositions (BIE) selects the host city between Busan, Riyadh and Rome.
In Paris on Monday, Han will participate in the Busan Expo Symposium 2023, followed by a meeting with his French counterpart, Elisabeth Borne.
After his stay in Paris, Han will fly over to Copenhagen on Tuesday and hold talks with his Danish counterpart, Mette Frederiksen, to discuss expanding cooperation between the two countries.
The next leg of Han's journey will take him to Zagreb, marking the first high-level official visit to Croatia. He will hold a meeting with Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic to discuss cooperation in sectors such as defense and technology, according to the office.
From Thursday to Saturday, Han will make his official visit to Greece, where he is scheduled to hold a summit meeting with his Greek counterpart, Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
Han's visit will mark the first official visit to Greece by South Korea's prime minister in six years.
The BIE plans to select the host city for the World Expo in late November.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo (2nd from L) walks with other government officials before he departs for Paris at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, in this photo provided by Han's office on Oct. 8, 2023. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Source: Yonhap News Agency