Russia To Be Presented In Paris As Country Claiming To Host Expo 2010

On November 30, Russia will be presented in Paris as a country claiming to host the World Universal Exhibition Expo 2010, Russia's Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref said on Monday at a joint news conference with Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov. Other contenders are China, Korea, Argentina, Mexico, and Poland. The international bureau of exhibitions, which organises expos, has 87 countries as its members. Gref said that preliminary estimates put the cost of holding Expo 2010 at more than two billion dollars. Moscow's share would be something like 800 million dollars, and that of the federal government, about 600 million dollars. The All-Russian Exhibition Centre and other sponsors are expected to contribute the rest.