During Expo Dubai 2020, the prestigious international exhibition held once every five years, Israel opened a massive booth costing 70 million shekels, attracting millions of visitors and considered one of the most successful in the history of the exhibition. However, following the war in Gaza, alongside political inefficacy, it appears Israel won’t have its own booth at the upcoming Expo Osaka 2025 in Japan.
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The World Expo exhibition serves as a showcase for countries worldwide to present their achievements in various fields and is a significant economic platform for attracting investments. The preparation for such an exhibition is highly complex and requires the allocation of resources from over ten government ministries.
Over the past year and a half, the Japanese embassy urged the Israeli government – both the previous and current administrations – to confirm its participation in the exhibition and specify the type of booth it would like to have: a large and prestigious Type A stage, exhibit to the one in Dubai, suitable for an OECD country, or a smaller exhibit in a shared space, like that of the Palestinian Authority and other developing countries. The cost of a Type A stage amounts to 74 million shekels.
In the government meeting held on October 11, ministers were set to approve Israel's participation in the exhibition. However, after the outbreak of the war four days earlier, the deliberations were suspended. January 25 marks the deadline for notifying the exhibition organizers of Israel's requests.
In recent days, Ambassador to Japan, Gilad Cohen, sent a message to the Foreign Ministry, the Prime Minister's Office’s director-general, and other officials, explaining, "The war in Gaza and the security and economic situation in Israel is clear to me. Dealing with this seems somewhat disconnected, and I write this as someone who has two sons currently fighting in Gaza.”
“But the time for a decision has come: the State of Israel needs to decide whether, as a hub of high-tech and innovation, it looks toward the future after the war, toward the development of the economy, industry, and exports, and participates in the most important World Expo exhibition until the end of the decade, or whether it gives it up."
The government is significantly divided on participation in the World Expo exhibition, and in what format it should do so should it decide to attend. Many believe it’s more appropriate not to spend too much money during wartime, to pass on this exhibition, and prepare for the next one: Expo Riyadh 2030.