North Korea has joined the International Exhibitions Bureau, making it eligible to vote on the host city of the 2012 World Expo.

A Seoul official says the North deposited its application to the French Foreign Ministry Monday and has been registered. Pyongyang may now take part in the critical vote to take place at the BIE General Assembly Tuesday in Paris.

Any member of the United Nations can join the bureau. Membership is immediately given upon application.

With the addition of North Korea, the BIE now has 132 members. Its entry is seen to bode well for the South as Pyongyang is expected to vote for Yeosu.