City holds briefing at Songdo's Gyeongwonjae; highlights agenda, location and track record as three pillars of its bid
Incheon has launched a full-scale diplomatic push to win the right to host the 2028 G20 summit, targeting foreign envoys stationed in South Korea.
The city invited ambassadors and diplomatic representatives from 36 countries to a briefing at Gyeongwonjae by Walkerhill in Songdo, Yeonsu-gu on Friday, formally requesting their support for the bid. Zakaria Al Saadi, the Omani ambassador to South Korea and dean of the diplomatic corps, was among those in attendance.
At the event, city officials framed Incheon's case around three pillars: agenda relevance, location and proven capability.
On the agenda front, officials pointed to the presence of the Green Climate Fund secretariat and a cluster of global biotech firms in Songdo, as well as AI-driven logistics innovation centered on Incheon International Airport and Incheon Port, arguing the city is ideally placed to advance G20 priorities such as climate action and technological innovation.
On location, they cited the ability to reach Songdo from Incheon International Airport in under 25 minutes, along with the concentration of conference venues and accommodation facilities in the area.
Officials said the city's island geography and bridge-connected layout give it a structural advantage for the safe movement and security of heads of state and their delegations.
They also highlighted Incheon's track record of hosting major international events, from the G20 Sherpa Meeting in 2010 to the Incheon Asian Games, the Asian Development Bank annual meeting and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation senior officials' meeting in 2025.
Incheon Mayor Park Chan-dae said 2028 marks the 20th anniversary of the G20 summit, which was established to address the 2008 global financial crisis. "We will prepare a summit that builds solidarity with neighboring regions along the West Coast at home, while broadly incorporating the voices of countries around the world to seek shared solutions," Park said.
Ambassador Al Saadi, speaking on behalf of the diplomatic corps, said Songdo's dynamic transformation and Incheon's future industries "are making a deep impression on the world," and wished the city success in its bid.
After the briefing, the envoys visited the Incheon Free Economic Zone promotional center at G-Tower in Songdo, where they toured smart city operating systems and reviewed the development of the biotech and advanced industry cluster.
Incheon said it plans to build on the event to strengthen its international diplomatic network and concentrate its administrative and diplomatic resources on securing the 2028 G20 summit.
gilbert@heraldcorp.com
