The Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee speaks at the plenary session of the 48th session of the World Heritage Committee, held at BEXCO in Busan on the 20th. [Photo: Yonhap News]

A total of 25 new cultural and natural sites were inscribed on the World Heritage List during the UNESCO World Heritage Committee session, which was held in South Korea for the first time.

South Korea successfully expanded the scope and scale of "Getbol, Korean Tidal Flats," which was originally inscribed in 2021.

The 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee announced on the 28th, during its meeting at BEXCO in Busan, that 25 new sites had been added to the World Heritage List this year.

By category, the newly inscribed sites consist of 19 cultural heritage sites, 5 natural heritage sites, and 1 mixed heritage site.

New additions include Japan’s "Asuka-Fujiwara: Archaeological Sites of Japan’s Ancient Capitals and Related Properties," which bears traces of ancient exchanges with the Korean Peninsula, and China’s "Ceramic Production Sites in Jingdezhen," known for its ceramic culture.

Photo of China's "Ceramic Production Sites in Jingdezhen." [Courtesy of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre]

Other additions include the "Deer Stone Monument Complexes and Related Bronze Age Sites" in Mongolia, which was excavated and researched in collaboration with the National Museum of Korea, and the "Mount Olympus" area in Greece, the mythical dwelling of the ancient gods.

South Korea added four tidal flat areas along the southwest coast to the existing "Getbol, Korean Tidal Flats," a treasure trove of biodiversity that supports over 2,400 species, including endangered migratory birds.

This marks the first time that South Korea has undertaken "significant modifications to the boundaries" of an existing World Heritage site.

With this year's committee deliberations, the total number of sites on the World Heritage List has reached 1,273.

Heo Moon, Administrator of the Korea Heritage Service, and Park Soo-hyun, Governor of South Chungcheong Province, celebrate the confirmation of the phase 2 expansion of "Getbol, Korean Tidal Flats" at the plenary session of the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee held at BEXCO in Busan on the 25th. The tidal flats added in phase 2 are located in Seosan (South Chungcheong Province) and Yeosu, Goheung, and Muan (South Jeolla Province). This expansion comes five years after the Seocheon, Gochang, Sinan, and Boseong-Suncheon tidal flats were first inscribed in 2021. [Joint Press Corps] Comoros, São Tomé and Príncipe, and South Sudan successfully inscribed their first-ever World Heritage sites, bringing the total number of countries with World Heritage sites to 173.

War, armed conflict, and development pressures occurring in various parts of the world have also impacted World Heritage sites.

Lebanon's "Rashid Karami International Fair-Tripoli," Palestine's "Ancient Jericho/Tell es-Sultan," and South Sudan's "Boma-Badingilo Migratory Landscape" were added to the List of World Heritage in Danger simultaneously with their inscription through emergency procedures.

Lebanon's "Tyre" and Ukraine's "Ancient City of Tauric Chersonese and its Chora" were also classified as "World Heritage in Danger."

Lebanon's "Tyre." [Courtesy of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre]

However, the "Historic Centre of Vienna" in Austria, which had been on the List of World Heritage in Danger since 2017 due to conflicts between the preservation of historic landscapes and urban development, was removed from the list following intense debate.

Lazare Eloundou Assomo, Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, publicly criticized the decision, stating, "This is a difficult decision for the Secretariat to follow," and added, "It seems practically impossible to implement [the measures]."

Lee Hwa-jong, a research professor at the Hanyang University Museum and an expert on World Heritage agenda, also pointed out, "Vienna has a higher symbolic value than many other sites, and this decision is not an exemplary case."

With this latest decision, there are now a total of 58 sites on the List of World Heritage in Danger.

Austria's "Historic Centre of Vienna." [Courtesy of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre]World Heritage sites are classified into cultural, natural, and mixed categories and are decided by the World Heritage Committee following evaluations by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Starting with "Seokguram Grotto and Bulguksa Temple," "Haeinsa Temple Janggyeong Panjeon," and "Jongmyo Shrine" in 1995, South Korea now holds a total of 17 World Heritage sites (15 cultural and 2 natural).

Next year, the "Fortress Walls of Hanyang," constructed to defend the Joseon capital, will be submitted for inscription. These walls include the Seoul City Wall, Bukhansanseong Fortress, and Tangchundaeseong Fortress.

Status of UNESCO World Heritage sites. [Courtesy of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre]

Meanwhile, the Korea Heritage Service reported that a total of 106,820 people visited the "Korea Pavilion" set up at the BEXCO exhibition hall during the World Heritage Committee session.

Approximately 40,000 people visited over the weekend of the 25th–26th, and 13,395 people attended the exhibition on the 27th.

The "K-Heritage" traditional cultural goods store, operated by the Korea Heritage Promotion Agency, has recorded cumulative sales of 216,732,700 won since its opening.