Rome files Expo 2030 bid

(ANSA) - ROME, SEP 7 - Rome on Wednesday filed its Expo 2030 bid with the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) in Paris.
    The bid committee delivered the bid to BIE Secretary-General Dimitri Kerkentzes.
    The bid was presented and then illustrated to the media by committee chair Giampiero Massolo, Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri, and, representing the government, Foreign Undersecretary Manlio Di Stefano.
    The committee said the bid had been "well received" by the BIE, which also received bids Wednesday from Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh , Odesa in Ukraine, and Busan in South Korea.
    The bid committee stressed that Rome's candidacy will be supported by all political forces, even after the government changes with the likely advent of a rightwing administration after the September 25 general election.
    Gualtieri said "on Expo, Italy is united, and in any scenario (the bid) will remain shared and supported by all".
    Gualtieri thanked Di Stefano for bringing the government's tangible support for the initiative.
    Di Stefano said "it's not an election campaign issue, and Expo will be a bridge between governments". (ANSA).