1 MONGOLIA MARKS CENTENNIAL WITH A NEW COURSE FOR CHANGE WWW.EASTASIAFORUM.ORG PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      2 E-MART OPENS FIFTH STORE IN ULAANBAATAR, MONGOLIA, TARGETING K-FOOD CRAZE WWW.BIZ.CHOSUN.COM PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      3 JAPAN AND MONGOLIA FORGE HISTORIC DEFENSE PACT UNDER THIRD NEIGHBOR STRATEGY WWW.ARMYRECOGNITION.COM  PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      4 CENTRAL BANK LOWERS ECONOMIC GROWTH FORECAST TO 5.2% WWW.UBPOST.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      5 L. OYUN-ERDENE: EVERY CITIZEN WILL RECEIVE 350,000 MNT IN DIVIDENDS WWW.GOGO.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      6 THE BILL TO ELIMINATE THE QUOTA FOR FOREIGN WORKERS IN MONGOLIA HAS BEEN SUBMITTED WWW.GOGO.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      7 THE SECOND NATIONAL ONCOLOGY CENTER TO BE CONSTRUCTED IN ULAANBAATAR WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      8 GREEN BOND ISSUED FOR WASTE RECYCLING WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/19      9 BAGANUUR 50 MW BATTERY STORAGE POWER STATION SUPPLIES ENERGY TO CENTRAL SYSTEM WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/19      10 THE PENSION AMOUNT INCREASED BY SIX PERCENT WWW.GOGO.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/19      КОКС ХИМИЙН ҮЙЛДВЭРИЙН БҮТЭЭН БАЙГУУЛАЛТЫГ ИРЭХ ОНЫ ХОЁРДУГААР УЛИРАЛД ЭХЛҮҮЛНЭ WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     "ЭРДЭНЭС ТАВАНТОЛГОЙ” ХК-ИЙН ХУВЬЦАА ЭЗЭМШИГЧ ИРГЭН БҮРД 135 МЯНГАН ТӨГРӨГ ӨНӨӨДӨР ОЛГОНО WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     ХУРИМТЛАЛЫН САНГИЙН ОРЛОГО 2040 ОНД 38 ИХ НАЯДАД ХҮРЭХ ТӨСӨӨЛӨЛ ГАРСАН WWW.NEWS.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     “ЭРДЭНЭС ОЮУ ТОЛГОЙ” ХХК-ИАС ХЭРЛЭН ТООНО ТӨСЛИЙГ ӨМНӨГОВЬ АЙМАГТ ТАНИЛЦУУЛЛАА WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     Л.ОЮУН-ЭРДЭНЭ: ХУРИМТЛАЛЫН САНГААС НЭГ ИРГЭНД 135 МЯНГАН ТӨГРӨГИЙН ХАДГАЛАМЖ ҮҮСЛЭЭ WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     “ENTRÉE RESOURCES” 2 ЖИЛ ГАРУЙ ҮРГЭЛЖИЛСЭН АРБИТРЫН МАРГААНД ЯЛАЛТ БАЙГУУЛАВ WWW.BLOOMBERGTV.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     “ORANO MINING”-ИЙН ГЭРЭЭ БОЛОН ГАШУУНСУХАЙТ-ГАНЦМОД БООМТЫН ТӨСЛИЙН АСУУДЛААР ЗАСГИЙН ГАЗАР ХУРАЛДАЖ БАЙНА WWW.BLOOMBERGTV.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     АЖИЛЧДЫН САРЫН ГОЛЧ ЦАЛИН III УЛИРЛЫН БАЙДЛААР ₮2 САЯ ОРЧИМ БАЙНА WWW.BLOOMBERGTV.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/19     PROGRESSIVE EQUITY RESEARCH: 2025 ОН “PETRO MATAD” КОМПАНИД ЭЭЛТЭЙ БАЙХААР БАЙНА WWW.BLOOMBERGTV.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/19     2026 ОНЫГ ДУУСТАЛ ГАДААД АЖИЛТНЫ ТОО, ХУВЬ ХЭМЖЭЭГ ХЯЗГААРЛАХГҮЙ БАЙХ ХУУЛИЙН ТӨСӨЛ ӨРГӨН МЭДҮҮЛЭВ WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/19    

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MBCC “Doing Business with Mongolia seminar and Christmas Receptiom” Dec 10. 2024 London UK MBCCI London UK Goodman LLC

NEWS

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Mongolians protest alleged theft of coal sold to China www.apnews.com

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (AP) — Protesters angered by allegations of corruption linked to Mongolia’s coal trade with China tried to force their way into the State Palace in the capital, demanding dismissals of officials involved in the scandal.
The U.S. Embassy in Ulaanbaatar issued an alert Monday saying that several hundred protesters had gathered in the freezing cold in the city’s Sukhbaatar Square during the weekend and marched to the presidential residence.
The demonstrators chanted and sang, stamping their feet to stay warm. They were demanding that the government hold officials accountable for the alleged theft of 385,000 tons of coal from stockpiles on Mongolia’s border with China.
Most of the demonstrators were college students and others in their 20s and 30s, a few bundled up in traditional thick robes, and some holding up placards.
“If you don’t love your country, why be a citizen?” said one. A black board held up by another said, “We want to live with dignity in our country.”
“If the citizens rise up, the feast is over!” said another.
The allegations center on coal from the Tavan Tolgoi region in the south Gobi desert that is being mined by state-owned Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi and two other companies. Local media reports said ETT, which is listed on Mongolia’s stock exchange, has been placed under state supervision as the government’s Independent Authority Against Corruption investigates.
Foreign sales of Mongolia’s vast mineral wealth, coal and other resources are a perennial source of conflict for the country, where nearly one in three people live in poverty. Adding to the frustrations, the pandemic has left many Mongolians struggling to make ends meet, with inflation topping 15%.
Mongolia transitioned to democracy in the early 1990s after six decades of communism. Peaceful protests are not uncommon in Ulanbaatar, where about half of Mongolia’s 3.2 million people live. In April, thousands of young protesters demonstrated in Sukhbaatar Square.
China is the destination of most of landlocked Mongolia’s exports of coal, cashmere, livestock and other resources.
In Beijing, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson who was asked about allegations that coal was stolen for sale inside China said she was unaware of that “specific situation.”
“China is a friendly neighbor of Mongolia, and we believe the Mongolian government will properly handle and investigate the matter. The competent Chinese authority will provide necessary assistance as requested by the Mongolian side in accordance with laws and regulations,” Mao said.
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Mongolia registers 69 COVID-19 cases www.akipress.com

69 new COVID-19 cases were registered in Mongolia on December 6.
42 of them were contacts in Ulaanbaatar, and 27 were recorded in the regions. No imported cases were found.
The death toll remained 2,135.
 
 
 
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Vietnam treasures relationship with Mongolia: Prime Minister www.vietnamplus.vn

Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam always considers Mongolia an important partner in the region, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh told Mongolian Minister of Defence Saikhanbayar Gursed on December 6.
At a reception for the Mongolian minister, who is on an official visit and will attend the Vietnam International Defence Expo 2022, the Government leader said he believes that the visit will contribute to enhancing mutual understanding and trust, and lifting the traditional friendly relationship between the two countries in general and defence cooperation in particular to new heights.
The two sides are pleased to see that the traditional friendship between Vietnam and Mongolia has been continuously consolidated and developed after nearly 70 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties. Cooperation in the fields of politics, diplomacy, economy, trade, investment, agriculture, and education has been promoted by leaders at all levels and produced practical results.
They shared the view that in the context of complicated development of the world and regional situation, it is necessary for the two countries to strengthen their solidarity and enhance mutual trust, understanding and support.
Vietnam shares Mongolia's socio-economic difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the world situation, and wishes to boost economic, trade and investment cooperation with Mongolia, PM Chinh said.
He suggested the two sides continue to exchange high-level delegations, bolster political-diplomatic relations, support each other at multilateral forums, step up cooperation in education and training, people-to-people exchanges, and agriculture, as well as study the opening of direct air routes connecting the two countries.
Chinh asked the Mongolian minister to continue promoting the relationship between the two ministries of defence and the two armies of Vietnam – Mongolia to commensurate with the collaboration framework between the two countries.
For his part, Saikhanbayar emphasised that Vietnam has a special place in Mongolia's foreign policy and is an important partner in the region. The two countries always support and help each other. Mongolia considers Vietnam a reliable partner; highly appreciates the development of Vietnam and wishes to upgrade relations with Vietnam, he said.
Saikhanbayar Gursed briefed the host about the results of his visit to Vietnam, as well as the cooperation activities between the two Ministries of Defence and the two armies over the past time. He also expressed his desire to strengthen cooperation with Vietnam in officer training, military medicine, military sports, and exchange of experiences in participating in United Nations peacekeeping operations.
The Mongolian official said that he would report to the Mongolian leadership the Vietnamese PM's proposals and pledged to work to promote collaboration in the areas that the Vietnamese leader mentioned.
The same day, Minister of Defence Phan Van Giang held talks with the visiting Mongolian minister, during which the two sides acknowledged the constant and substantive development of bilateral relations in all fields.
They agreed that the two sides have effectively implemented the agreement between the two governments on defence cooperation signed in 2019, and vowed to continue to maintain high-level contacts and exchanges at all levels; improve the quality and efficiency of training cooperation and the sharing of experiences in participating in UN peacekeeping operations.
On this occasion, the two sides also exchanged assessments on world and regional situations and issues of mutual concern. They underlined the importance of preserving an environment of peace, stability, cooperation and development in the East Sea./.
VNA
 
 
 
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O. Batsaikhan: More than 30,000 people were executed, but the number of the repressed probably exceeded 100,000 www.montsame.mn

There are reports that 35 thousand people were executed in Mongolia during the years of political repression, but the number of the repressed probably exceeded 100,000, said Prof. Sc.D O. Batsaikhan.
It was noted during his speech that the victims of political repression were mainly state and social dignitaries and Buddhist monks.
In 1929, Mongolia had a population of 721 thousand. 17,000 of the 25,000 Mongolians who were condemned for false political crimes and executed between 1937 and 1940 were Buddhist monks.
In August 1922, D. Bodoo, the first prime minister of the revolutionary period, and 14 others were executed without trial after confessing under torture by Soviet agents to conspiring to overthrow the government. Two years later, S. Danzan, one of the founding members of the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party (MPRP) was executed during the Third Party Congress for representing "bourgeois interests".
In 1928, several prominent MPRP members including A. Danzan, J. Tseveen, Ts. Dambadorj, and N. Jadambaa, were imprisoned or exiled in a widescale purge of suspected rightwingers as the country launched its "Leftist Period" of more rapid collectivization, land expropriation, and persecution of the Buddhist Church. After those drastic measures resulted in popular uprisings throughout the country in 1932, several of the MPRP's most hard-line leftists including Z. Shijee, U.Badrakh, and Prime Minister Ts. Jigjidjav were blamed, officially expelled from the party, and later executed during the Great Repression.
In 1933–34, in what is viewed as a dress rehearsal for the repressions of 1937–1939, MPRP General Secretary J. Lkhumbe and other MPRP elements, particularly Buryat-Mongols, were falsely accused of conspiring with Japanese spies. Over 1,500 people were implicated and 56 were executed.
Statistical documents prepared by the State Commission on Rehabilitation reveal some heart-breaking numbers. Within the two years between 1937 and 1939, the institute called the Extraordinary Commission falsely charged 25 thousand and 824 people for political crimes, and the court sentenced 20 thousand of them to execution by shooting.
In addition to countless lives that were lost during the repression, some of Mongolia’s cultural and religious heritages were also lost along with 1,000 churches, added O. Batsaikhan.
“False confessions obtained through torture have not entirely stopped in our nation. Additionally, it is necessary to make regulations for the National Commission for Human Rights to simultaneously review information related to torture and false confessions, to legalize the methodology for calculating emotional damage, and to enhance the knowledge and attitude of the judicial and investigative authorities toward human rights”, said B. Enkhbold, a member of the National Commission for Human Rights.
The National Commission for Human Rights presented the State Great Khural with 413 proposals along with 21 reports on the status of human rights and freedoms in Mongolia. The prohibition against torture was cited in 13 of these reports.
To establish cooperation with governmental organizations that carry out comparable functions in other nations, the State Commission on Rehabilitation invited representatives of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of the Republic of Korea led by Lee Jae-sun and organized a discussion themed “Human Rights and Repression” to exchange experience in eliminating the harmful effects and consequences of political repression.
Established in 2005, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Korea is responsible for investigating incidents in Korean history that occurred from Japan's rule of Korea in 1910 through the end of authoritarian rule in South Korea.
The body has investigated numerous atrocities committed by various government agencies during Japan's occupation of Korea, the Korean War, and the authoritarian governments that ruled afterwards. The commission estimates that tens of thousands of people were executed in 1950. The victims include political prisoners, civilians who were killed by foreign troops, and civilians who allegedly collaborated with communist North Korea or local communist groups.
Professor Lee Jae-seung of the law department at Konkuk University gave a presentation on "Korea's efforts to promote reconciliation and peace" during the aforementioned discussion. Stating that the Republic of Korea has now become a stable and successful country despite the hardships of feudalism, colonialism, dictatorship, division, war, and the communist system in the past, he underscored that it is necessary for the regional and international community to accelerate the joint efforts to solve the issues of Korean Peninsula.
In 2005-2010, The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of the Republic of Korea investigated and resolved 11,175 applications submitted by the citizens, issuing compensation of about USD 75,000 to the families of the victims.
As of December 2021, the State Commission on Rehabilitation rehabilitated 31,460 victims in Mongolia, and since 1998, compensation of MNT 6 billion 589 million had been granted.
Chairperson of the State Commission on Rehabilitation S. Odontuya noted during the discussion that it is regrettable that the protection of human rights and the avertance of abuses are not fully fulfilled while expressing her willingness to intensify cooperation with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of the Republic of Korea to effectively protecting human rights.
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Banks Lifted Their Limitations on USD Transactions www.montsame.mn

Commercial banks have set a daily limitation on USD transactions since May and restricted some long-term loans. Thereby, banks started lifting their daily limit on USD.
According to economists, the exchange rate of the USD against the MNT will continue to rise, and the economic situation will worsen in the coming year. Last October, the USD exchange rate decreased to MNT 3,150-3,250 in foreign exchange marketplaces, while it reached MNT 3,420 in the Bank of Mongolia. But at the “Naiman Sharga” currency exchange, it reached MNT 3,440-3,450 making the difference between the market exchange rates MNT 30-40.
The USD exchange rate rose from MNT 2,950 to MNT 3,350 within a week in April and May. However, this bubble started to subside when commercial banks eased their restrictions to some extent.
However, economists warn of the possible risk that the bubble will re-emerge and the USD exchange rate might exceed MNT 3,500.
Banks are beginning to take off their daily limit on USD and are issuing certain restrictions on obligatory large transactions.
The Bank of Mongolia announced that the USD’s exchange rate equals MNT 3,420 as of today /12.02/2022/. Consequently, the gap between the central bank’s exchange rate and the “Naiman Sharga” started to fluctuate within two digits.
But commercial banks such as State Bank, Khaan Bank, Golomt Bank, and Trade and Development Bank are offering USD to people without any limitations.
 
 
 
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Mongolia pays off USD 1.5 billion Chinggis Bond www.montsame.mn

Today, on December 6, the Prime Minister of Mongolia, L. Oyun-Erdene, announced that the Mongolian government has repaid in full its inaugural USD 1.5 billion Chinggis bond in a bid to manage its debt profile.
Before the meeting with the press, the Prime Minister authorized the Minister of Finance to transfer the remaining USD 136 million of Chinggis Bond debt and signed the relevant order.
In 2012, the Government of Mongolia issued Chinggis Bond, raising USD 1.5 billion with a condition to repay USD 500 million in 2018 and the remaining USD 1 billion in 2022. According to the condition, the first part of the debt and its interest were repaid on January 5, 2018.
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Number of Passenger Flights and Visas to be Increased www.montsame.mn

The government has announced 2023-2025 as “The Years to Visit Mongolia.” Within the framework of this context, the revised draft Law on Tourism included no restrictions on passenger flights to Mongolia following 3 years.
After starting the liberalization of the air transport sector, Mongolia will accept all passenger flights from any country with no restrictions in the next three years. In addition to this decision, our country will double the number of countries for e-visas and issue visas online within 48 hours through the digital system.
The government has prepared and submitted the revised draft of the Law on Tourism which was initially approved in 2000 to the Parliament to improve the legal framework of the industry.
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DR Congo: Miner Glencore pays $180m in latest corruption case www.bbc.com

The Swiss-based mining company, Glencore, has said it will pay $180m (£147m) to the Democratic Republic of Congo to settle corruption claims.
The agreement covers an 11-year period from 2007 to 2018.
It is the latest in a series of corruption cases which has seen Glencore agree to pay out more than $1.6bn in fines this year.
In May it admitted bribing officials in several African nations including DR Congo (DRC).
The Congolese government has told the BBC it is not commenting.
It followed an investigation by American, British and Brazilian authorities that also covered corruption claims in Latin America.
Despite the fines Glencore is expected to make record profits of around $3.2bn this year.
There have been various investigations into the miner's activities in the DRC between 2007 and 2018 which uncovered evidence of bribery.
In May, the US Department of Justice said that Glencore had admitted to corruptly conspiring to pay around $27.5m to third parties to secure "improper business advantages" in DRC, while "intending a portion of the payments to be used as bribes".
Glencore owns several assets in the country, including the Mutanda copper-cobalt mine and a controlling stake in KCC, a large copper-cobalt project.
The mining firm said the settlement with the Congolese government would cover "all present and future claims arising from any alleged acts of corruption" by the Glencore Group between 2007 and 2018.
"Glencore is a long-standing investor in the DRC and is pleased to have reached this agreement to address the consequences of its past conduct," Glencore's chairman Kalidas Madhavpeddi said.
In May, Glencore also admitted to paying millions in bribes to officials in Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, South Sudan, Brazil and Venezuela.
It has received a series of penalties, with a UK court last month ordering the company to pay more than £285m over African bribes linked to its London-based commodities trading desk.
Remarking on the culture that developed at Glencore, Mr Justice Fraser said that "bribery was accepted as part of the West Africa desk's way of doing business".
"Bribery is a highly corrosive offence. It quite literally corrupts people and companies, and spreads like a disease," he added.
Glencore's chairman has admitted "unacceptable practices" have taken place but that the firm today is "not the company it was".
Glencore is one of the world's largest commodities companies, employing around 135,000 people in more than 35 countries.
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Protesters in Mongolia try to storm state palace www.aljazeera.com

Thousands of people have braved freezing temperatures in Mongolia’s capital to protest against alleged corruption in the country’s coal industry and soaring inflation, with some later attempting to storm government house.
Protesters, many of them young people, rallied in Ulaanbaatar’s central Sukhbaatar Square in -21C (-6F) temperatures on Monday, demanding “justice” against corrupt officials and calling for the country’s parliament to be dismissed.
“Help us our country is collapsing,” read one placard. Some herders also travelled to the city to take part in the rallies.
Protesters are frustrated with the country’s ailing economy, with inflation soaring to 15.2 percent in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and closed borders affecting trade with neighbouring China.
People are “suffering incredibly economically,” Jana Zilkova, country director for the aid group Caritas Czech Republic in Ulaanbaatar, told Al Jazeera.
Whistleblower claims that a group of legislators with ties to the coal industry had stolen billions of dollars have added to the discontent.
“People are upset and angry over this case because they were promised the wealth of the country would be shared with them,” Zilkova added.
The police tried to break up the demonstration at 9pm local time (13:00 GMT) but some protesters tried to force their way into the government building, knocking down barriers and breaking windows, according to local media reports. Police intervened and most protesters had left the square a couple of hours later.
Last month, Mongolia’s anti-corruption authority announced that more than 30 officials — including the chief executive of the state-owned coal mining company Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi — were under investigation for embezzlement.
The firm controls the Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi deposits, which contain 7.5 billion tonnes of coking coal — an essential ingredient in the steelmaking process and a key component of Mongolia’s state budget revenue. It is yet to comment on the allegations.
The implicated legislators are alleged to have leveraged their ownership of coal mines and companies that transport coal across the border into China to make illegal profits.
Mongolia sends 86 percent of its exports to China, with coal accounting for more than half the total. A quarter of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) comes from mining.
Monday’s rally came a day after several hundred protesters gathered in the capital, according to the US embassy in Ulaanbaatar.
Protesters attempted to march on Ikh Tenger, the official residence of the President and Prime Minister, “where they were stopped by a police barricade,” the embassy said.
Khurelsukh Ukhnaa was elected president in June last year, months after he had been forced to resign as prime minister amid public outrage over the treatment of a COVID-19 patient and her newborn baby.
SOURCE: AFP, AL JAZEERA
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Environmental and human rights assessment of Rio Tinto’s former Panguna copper mine begins www.mining.com

A historic independent environmental and human rights legacy impact assessment of Rio Tinto’s former Panguna copper mine will begin in Bougainville this week.
The Panguna mine was operated by BCL, majority-owned by Rio Tinto, for 17 years from 1972 until 1989, when operations were suspended due to an uprising against the mine and subsequent civil war. A peace agreement was signed in 2001.
Bougainville had a history of small-scale mining. But the identification of a major gold, copper and silver orebody at Panguna in the 1960s prompted Bougainville Copper Ltd, (BCL) a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, to start operations of a major mine.
Last year, Rio Tinto publicly committed to fund the independent assessment in response to a human rights complaint brought by 156 local community members, represented by the Human Rights Law Centre.
The human rights complaint alleges that the massive volume of mine waste pollution left behind by Panguna is putting communities’ lives and livelihoods at risk.
Over a billion tonnes of waste tailings were released directly into the Jaba and Kawerong rivers during operations. Pollution from the mine continues to contaminate the rivers and flood large areas of land downstream, which is having devastating impacts on the lives of thousands of Bougainvilleans, the Human Rights Law Centre said in a press release Monday.
The Legacy Impact Assessment is being overseen by a committee comprised of community leaders, landowners, government representatives, the Human Rights Law Centre and representatives from Rio Tinto and Bougainville Copper Limited.
“This is an important step towards addressing insecurity and pain for the people in the impacted community areas. Thus, we welcome the assessment into the impacts of the Panguna mine as soon as possible,” committee member and traditional landowner Theonila Roka Matbob, said in the statement.
“We are always worrying that the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breathe is not safe. We worry about levees collapsing and mine waste flooding our lands and communities,” she said. “We welcome Rio Tinto’s commitment to this process,” she said.
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