As the Osaka Expo nears its conclusion on Monday after a six-month run, debate over the fate of the Grand Ring, an iconic wooden structure surrounding all the country pavilions, is deepening. While the prefectural and municipal governments of Osaka have announced they will retain just a 200-meter portion of the structure with a 2,025-meter circumference, a group of citizens, academics and diplomats have called for its full preservation under the slogan, “Save the Ring.” Apart from the 200-meter