Osaka Chosen To Host 2025 World Expo

Above, two time capsules from Expo 1970 were buried on the grounds of Osaka Castle.
One will be opened every 100 years and the other in 5,000 years. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Osaka, Japan will be hosting the 2025 World Expo. This will be the city's second hosting of a world expo.

According to the Asahi Shimbun:

PARIS--The city of Osaka will host the World Expo in 2025, after beating out cities in Russia and Azerbaijan in the race to host an event expected to draw millions of visitors and showcase the local economy and culture. 

Shouts of joy in Japanese erupted in the Paris auditorium when the 170 member states of the Bureau International des Expositions voted Friday in favor of Osaka's bid. Dark-suited officials hugged and jumped up and down, and Japan's economy and trade minister, Hiroshige Seko, said he felt "Excellent! I'm excited! I also feel a heavy responsibility to make Expo 2025 successful." 

Back in Tokyo, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said in a statement that the country will make an utmost effort to "achieve a magnificent expo in Osaka that would give dreams and surprises to everyone in the world." Hosting a world expo in Japan would be "a golden opportunity to promote fascinating charms of Japan to the rest of the world," Abe said. 

Past world's fairs introduced such wonders as the Eiffel Tower, the Ferris Wheel and Seattle's Space Needle. Today's version is aimed at finding solutions to challenges facing humanity.

Osaka previously hosted a world expo back in 1970. Two time capsules with artifacts from Expo 1970 were buried on the grounds of Osaka Castle. One is to be opened every 100 years and the other in 5,000 years.

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