Korean Media: South Korea's Yeosu "World Island Expo" Faces Trouble After Zhoushan's Withdrawal

According to a September 9 report by Korean media outlet JoongAng Ilbo (Japanese edition): The "2026 Yeosu World Island Expo," which has already opened, will run for 61 days and is the world's first exhibition themed around islands.

On the 7th, the Yeosu World Island Expo Organizing Committee announced: "The opening ceremony was held on the 5th at the main venue in Busan-eup, Yeosu, Jeollanam-do, and the exhibition will continue for over two months." During the opening ceremony, the original musical drama "Gimnyeong: The Last Mermaid" premiered, inspired by local legends about mermaids.

A total of 133 performances by art groups from 11 cities across 16 countries and regions will be held both inside and outside the exhibition venues. Highlights include family-friendly "island camping," hiking along magnificent coastal scenery, and fishing tours with island residents. Other offerings include healing meals made from island ingredients, yacht tours, "three meals and one night on an island," health-oriented activities such as yoga and meditation, romantic island cinemas, stargazing experiences, and various other island-themed activities. This year’s Island Expo is themed “Connecting Islands, Oceans, and the Future,” with a total investment of 70 billion KRW.

The organizing committee set a target of attracting 3 million visitors and generating revenue of 1.2 billion KRW.

The World Island Expo organizing committee is also using diplomatic channels through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to persuade Chinese participation. Previously, Zhejiang Province’s Zhoushan City announced it would suspend its participation, following tensions triggered by the naming of the "Taiwan Pavilion" at the Gwangju Biennale, which opened on the 5th. It is expected that Chinese tourists would make up the majority among the 90,000 targeted foreign visitors, and this incident has negatively impacted international visitor arrivals.

Zhoushan’s absence stems from protests against the establishment of the “Taiwan Pavilion” at the Gwangju Biennale. Earlier, China announced its withdrawal from the event, with the Chinese Ambassador to South Korea stating that the Gwangju Biennale violated the principle of "respecting One China."

The World Island Expo organizing committee plans to convince China by emphasizing that when Taiwan expressed interest in participating last year, the committee stated it would not allow Taiwan’s participation to avoid disputes.

A committee official said: "Given that Zhoushan is a city composed of many islands, similar in geographical characteristics to Yeosu, South Korea, we plan to discuss various exchange strategies during the island expo period," and added, "We hope to persuade the Chinese side as much as possible."

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1875808107099146/

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