Saudi Arabia to Host World Expo in 2030, Crown Prince Hails Win as Culmination of Saudi Vision Goals

Saudi Arabia secured a decisive victory in the bid to host the Expo 2030 World Fair, as announced by the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) in Paris on Tuesday.
The confirmation came after Riyadh overwhelmingly garnered 119 votes in the initial round, marking a landslide triumph.
Following this announcement, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman declared that the Kingdom is set to deliver an “unprecedented edition in the history of hosting Expos,” emphasizing that “Riyadh's win in hosting Expo solidifies its leading role.”
Riyadh outperformed the Italian capital, Rome, and the South Korean city of Busan by a wide margin during the initial round of voting.
BIE announced that the kingdom would be hosting the exhibition after a secret ballot was cast during the 173rd General Assembly of BIE in Paris.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman extended his congratulations to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to mark the landmark occasion.
“The kingdom’s selection as the host of the World Expo 2030 underlines its influential and leading role and the international confidence it enjoys. Saudi Arabia has become an ideal destination for hosting major international events, including the esteemed World Expo,” said the Crown Prince.
“The World Expo 2030 coincides with a crucial year for the realization of the goals and plans outlined in Saudi Vision 2030.”
“This Expo represents a remarkable opportunity to share with the world the lessons learned from our unprecedented journey of transformation,” he added.
The Crown Prince stressed Riyadh’s readiness to welcome the world at Expo 2030, and the fact that it will fulfill the obligations stipulated in the bid with the aim of achieving the main theme of the expo, “The Era of Change: Together for a Foresighted Tomorrow”, and its subtopics: “A Different Tomorrow”, “Climate Action”, and “Prosperity for All.”
The Kingdom's bid to host the Expo received strong and direct support from the Crown Prince, starting with the Kingdom’s official application to the BIE on October 29, 2021.
The Long Parisian Day: Unraveling the Details
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan’s confidence in Riyadh’s bid to host Expo 2030 was not misplaced. In his presentation of Riyadh’s file before the BIE, Prince Faisal asserted that the Kingdom would emerge victorious in the competition against Italy and South Korea.
The top diplomat had affirmed that 130 countries expressed confidence in Riyadh’s proposal, and its capability to host the exposition.
According to BIE’s secretary-general, it is rare for a candidate country to secure victory from the first round, a feat achieved by Saudi Arabia with two-thirds of the votes from the outset.
During Tuesday’s session, the Saudi delegation was the last to address the General Assembly, following the diverse presentation from the South Korean and Italian delegations.
The Saudi Presentation
The Saudi delegation, led by Prince Faisal, delivered a cohesive presentation under the theme “From the World, To the World.”
They emphasized Saudi Arabia’s commitment to establishing the largest network of cooperation with nations worldwide.
Notably, Riyadh expressed its intent to allocate $384 million to assist 100 nations in need, enabling their participation in “Expo Riyadh 2030” under the banner of “One World, One Pavilion.”
Prince Faisal underscored the Kingdom’s focus on developmental goals, accelerating progress on all fronts, and addressing global challenges, including climate change, sustainable development, and international cooperation.
Speaking as he led the Saudi delegation at the general assembly on Tuesday, Prince Faisal stated, "The Kingdom is committed to collaborating with all stakeholders to deliver a distinctive edition of Expo 2030."
Princess Haifa Al-Mogrin, Saudi Arabia's representative to UNESCO, stated that the Kingdom will collaborate with all nations every step of the way until 2030.
She highlighted the focus on providing opportunities for education, health, environment, and prosperity for all.
Expo Hosting Journey
Among the five cities that initially submitted bids to host Expo 2030, two dropped out of the race early: Moscow and the Ukrainian city of Odessa, overlooking the Black Sea.
Moscow withdrew its bid due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and Odessa was not considered by the BIE as it did not meet the necessary conditions for organizing such a significant event.
This left Riyadh, Rome, and Busan as the remaining contenders, each presenting ambitious plans to host the prestigious expo, considered the global event in the exhibition field.
After a series of successive stages in the bidding process, the decisive moment arrived on Nov.28 with the electronic voting by the 180 member countries.
The BIE provided the final opportunity for the three competing parties to present their arguments and focus on key points they deemed “winning.”
The BIE director emphasized the need for strict adherence to the allocated time, not exceeding 20 minutes per presentation.
After Riyadh’s bid won the right to host the Expo 2030 world fair, Prince Faisal affirmed that Saudi Arabia’s victory “signifies the Kingdom's status and the international community's confidence in it.”
Prince Faisal emphasized that Saudi Arabia would present a “new type” of Expo in 2030, changing the dynamics of international exhibitions.
He expressed pride in the Kingdom’s exceptional success and thanked the nations that voted in Riyadh’s favor, acknowledging the presentations by South Korea and Italy.
Once again, he underscored that the expo is “not just for Saudi Arabia but for the entire world,” with Riyadh planning to involve all nations in its conception, planning, and execution.

US President-elect Donald Trump vowed on Monday to impose sweeping new tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China as soon as he takes office as part of his effort to crack down on illegal immigration and drugs.

He said he would impose a 25% tax on all products entering the country from Canada and Mexico, and an additional 10% tariff on goods from China, as one of his first executive orders.

In a series of posts to his Truth Social account, Trump vowed to hit some of the United States' largest trading partners with duties on all goods entering the country.

“On January 20th, as one of my many first Executive Orders, I will sign all necessary documents to charge Mexico and Canada a 25% tariff on ALL products coming into the United States,” he wrote, according to AFP.

He said the new tariffs would remain in place “until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!”

The President ignored the US, Mexico and Canada three-decade-old free trade agreement, now called the USMCA.

In another post, Trump said he would also be slapping China with a 10% tariff, “above any additional Tariffs,” in response to what he said was its failure to tackle fentanyl smuggling.

“No one will win a trade war,” Liu Pengyu, a spokesman for China's embassy in the United States, told AFP by email, defending Beijing's efforts to curb fentanyl smuggling.

“China believes that China-US economic and trade cooperation is mutually beneficial in nature,” Liu added.

Canada said it was “essential” to US energy supplies, and insisted the relationship benefits American workers.

“We will of course continue to discuss these issues with the incoming administration,” said the statement from Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland.

Tariffs are a key part of Trump's economic agenda, with the Republican vowing wide-ranging duties on allies and adversaries alike while he was on the campaign trail.

Many economists have warned that tariffs would hurt growth and push up inflation, since they are primarily paid by importers bringing the goods into the US, who often pass those costs on to consumers.

But those in Trump's inner circle have insisted that the tariffs are a useful bargaining chip for the US to push its trading partners to agree to more favorable terms, and to bring back manufacturing jobs from overseas.

Saudi Arabia to Host World Expo in 2030, Crown Prince Hails Win as Culmination of Saudi Vision Goals