Hyundai Motor chief requests Slovakia’s support for Busan’s Expo bid

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun visited Slovakia to request its support for South Korean port city Busan’s bid to host the World Expo in 2030, to the auto giant said Sunday.

Chung visited Slovakia on the leg of his European trip to meet country leaders. He met with Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala last week.

Slovakia holds a significant status as the chair country of Visegrad Group, a cultural and political alliance of four Central European countries that also includes Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland.

Slovakian Prime Minister Eduard Heger, Vice Minister for Economy Peter Svec and other key officials attended the meeting with Chung, where they discussed Busan’s competitiveness to host the global event as well as the Korean carmaker’s business operations in Slovakia.

“Busan is South Korea’s largest port city and a logistics hub that connects Eurasia and Pacific Ocean. The city owns countless experience of hosting various large-scale international and cultural events, making itself as a qualified candidate to host World Expo,” Chung told Slovakian officials.

Hyundai Motor Group said Chung also shared ideas on carmaker's local activities to support communities, such as bike sharing project Bike Kia, and industry-academy collaboration programs to nurture talent for Slovakia’s automotive industry.

Kia’s Slovakian manufacturing facility works as Europe’s major production base for the Korean carmaker. Since its opening in December 2006, an accumulated 4 million vehicles including popular models like Sportage and market-targeting models like CUVs have been produced there.