Ekaterinburg to present its bid for Expo 2020 in Paris

Sverdlovsk region Governor Yevgeny Kuyvashev, being a member of the Russian delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich, present the bid of Ekaterinburg for Expo 2020 on November 22 in Paris. The presentation was made at the 152nd session of the General Assembly of the International Exhibitions Bureau. The event is of great economic importance for both the region and for the country as a whole.

Chairman of the organizing committee of Expo 2020, Arkady Dvorkovich, delivered a report about the benefits of Russia as a potential hosting country of Expo 2020 and Ekaterinburg as a candidate city to host the exhibition.

"Ekaterinburg is located at the crossroads between Europe and Asia. This is a major industrial center, a transportation hub, a city with a strong research capacity. We have a lot of strong sides, which we want to demonstrate," said Arkady Dvorkovich.

The Russian delegation, in addition to the governor of Sverdlovsk region, includes a member of the Council of Federation, Arkady Chernetsky, President of the Center of Research and Commercializing of New Technologies, Viktor Vekselberg, President of the Sverdlovsk regional Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, Chairman of the Board of Directors of TMK, Dmitry Pumpyansky, and General Director of UGMK Andrey Kozitsyn.

"The exhibition will contribute to further development of the city and the region. This can be seen in the positive experience of Shanghai and Yeosu that have hosted Expo before. For Ekaterinburg and the Sverdlovsk region, this is great investment, both budget and off-budget investment," Yevgeny Kuyvashev said.

According to the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Expo 2020, Arkady Chernetsky, "Expo is a global competition of ideas, innovations, and technological achievements. The exhibition brings together the things that change the world around us for the better. That is why a victory is very important for us."

World Expo shows are held every five years under the aegis of the International Exhibitions Bureau, headquartered in Paris. Russia is an active participant of international Expo exhibitions, but has never been honored with the right to be the host country. Moscow claimed to host Expo 2010, but the winner was Shanghai.

The vote on the city, where the exhibition is to be held in 2020, will take place in November 2013. Apart from Ekaterinburg, the list of candidate cities to host Expo 2020 includes Dubai (UAE), Izmir (Turkey), Ayutthaya (Thailand) and Sao Paulo (Brazil).