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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that it will hold 2025 UN Weeks in Busan from October 24 to November 11.
UN Weeks in Busan is an annual event launched in 2019 by Busan—the only city in the world that hosts the United Nations Memorial Cemetery—to enhance its global recognition as an international city of peace.
Hosted by Busan Metropolitan City and organized by the Busan Global City Foundation, the event begins with United Nations Day (October 24), an international commemorative day, and continues through November 11, the United Nations Veterans International Memorial Day (Turn Toward Busan). Over approximately three weeks, Busan holds a variety of events praying for world peace and honoring veterans, branding itself as the world’s central city of peace.
This year’s UN Weeks in Busan 2025 consists of a pre-event gala, the United Nations Day Commemorative Ceremony, and the World Peace Forum.
On October 23, the eve of United Nations Day, a commemorative dinner celebrating the 80th anniversary of the UN’s founding will take place at 5 p.m. at the Grand Josun Busan.
Attendees will include Lee Jun-seung, Vice Mayor for Administrative Affairs of Busan, Kim Jin-a, Second Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, ambassadors and diplomats from UN member countries that participated in the Korean War, and representatives from the United Nations Association of the Republic of Korea—totaling about 120 peace and diplomacy figures from home and abroad.
During the dinner, participants will honor the UN’s spirit of sacrifice and dedication while discussing pathways toward a sustainable future of peace.
Later that evening, at 8 p.m., the UN 80th Anniversary Peace Concert will be held at the Busan Cultural Center Grand Theater. The Busan Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Yoon Han-gyeol, and world-renowned soprano Sumi Jo will perform to express the UN’s historical significance in ending war and establishing peace through music.
At 11 a.m. on October 24, the 80th United Nations Day Commemorative Ceremony will take place at the UN Memorial Cemetery.
Marking the 80th anniversary of the UN’s founding, this year’s official events—previously held separately in Seoul and Busan—will, for the first time, be jointly hosted in Busan at the city’s suggestion.
Approximately 300 participants, including Mayor Park Heong-joon, Second Vice Minister Kim Jin-a, members of the diplomatic corps in Korea, UN officials, and citizen representatives, will gather to honor the fallen soldiers of the Korean War and reflect on the meaning of the UN’s 80-year history.
The ceremony will feature the entrance of national flags from the 11 countries with interred soldiers, followed by the national ceremony, floral tributes, rifle salute, moment of silence, commemorative remarks, a citizen message presentation, and a memorial performance by the Nam-gu Boys and Girls Choir. A congratulatory video message from UN Secretary-General António Guterres will also be shown.
A special performance will also be held in which a citizen representative presents a time capsule containing Busan citizens’ peace messages to Mayor Park Heong-joon, symbolizing their wish that the wave of peace originating from Busan—the city protected by the UN—will spread across the world.
The World Peace Forum 2025, now in its sixth year, will be held at 1 p.m. on November 7 at The Westin Josun Busan under the theme “80 Years of Promise, A Future of Peace.”
Film directors Carla Cenci and Guillaume Giovanetti will deliver the keynote address titled “Documenting the World, Creating Peace,” exploring the meaning of peace through the languages of memory and art and sharing messages that link universal human values and solidarity through creativity.
The Busan Global City Foundation will also host the Youth Leader Talk and organize special programs such as a Peace Special Broadcast in collaboration with Busan English Broadcasting (BeFM) to further develop Busan’s peace brand—Busan, City of Peace and Global Cooperation—into a sustainable international cooperation platform.
At the United Nations Day Commemorative Ceremony, Mayor Park will remark,
“This year’s 80th anniversary, marked by the first unified ceremony held in Busan instead of separately in Seoul and Busan, carries great significance. Busan stands upon the peace safeguarded by the United Nations and is growing into a city harmonizing logistics, finance, advanced industries, and cultural tourism. We will continue to honor the noble sacrifices of the fallen soldiers and carry forward the spirit of peace as we rise as a global hub city.”
This content has been translated by AI. Please refer to the attached original Korean version for accuracy if needed.
Translated by AI
Link to Busan press releases in Korean
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