China's minister of transport and his Mongolian counterpart held a video meeting on Wednesday, during which the two sides exchanged in-depth views on relevant issues in the field of transport between China and Mongolia, including cooperation in highways, railways and civil aviation, read a post on the official WeChat account of the Chinese Ministry of Transport (MOT).

The dialogue came just ahead of a state visit to China by Mongolian President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh from November 27 to 28, according to the diplomatic agenda released by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday.

During the Wednesday meeting, Li Xiaopeng, Chinese minister of transport, said that in recent years, the economic and trade relations between China and Mongolia have been developing rapidly, and the demand for cooperation in transport, including infrastructure construction and connectivity, has been expanding.

"It is hoped that the transport authorities will further enhance the transport connectivity between China and Mongolia, ensure the security, stability and smooth flow of the logistics supply chain, and promote the bilateral transport cooperation to a new level, so as to better serve the economic and social development of the two countries and benefit people," said Li.

In the first half of 2022, China and Mongolia's bilateral trade accounted for more than 60 percent of Mongolia's total foreign trade volume, according to customs data.

Sandag Byambatsogt, Mongolia's minister of road and transport development, said that Mongolian transport authorities attach great importance to deepening friendly and cooperative relations with Chinese transport authorities.

"It is hoped that the two sides will work together to further strengthen bilateral exchanges and cooperation in railway, road and civil aviation, and jointly carry out the revision of relevant cooperation agreements so as to continuously enhance bilateral transport connectivity and push for more achievements in bilateral transport cooperation," said Byambatsogt.

Li also said the two sides aim to jointly revise the agreement on international road transport between China and Mongolia and actively promote China-Mongolia-Russia international road transport cooperation along the Asian Highway 4 (AH4) of the Asian Highway Network.

"We will complete the revision of the China-Mongolia border railway agreement at an early date and improve the capacity of railway ports to transport goods. The two sides will strengthen cooperation in the field of civil aviation and further facilitate personnel and economic and trade exchanges," said Li.

In September, the first China-Mongolia cargo train since the launch of a new "railway express" service featuring rapid customs clearance departed from Ulanqab in North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to Mongolia.

The railway express service uses digital and paperless administration, allowing customs to conduct inspections of the cargo goods online while simplifying the application procedures, according to a statement sent to the Global Times from the Customs of Jining in Ulanqab.

"China looks forward to working with Mongolia to take the visit of the Mongolian president as an opportunity to deepen our strategic mutual trust and practical cooperation and set an example in neighborly relations to elevate China-Mongolia relations to a new height," said Zhao Lijian, spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry of China, on Tuesday during a regular press conference.

Global Times

Address by the President of Mongolia at the awards ceremony of the Order of Chinggis Khaan:

"Fellow Mongolians, descendants of the homeland of the Great Mongol Empire,

Fellow Mongol brothers and sisters in every corner of the world,

Distinguished guests,

Allow me to extend my sincere felicitations on this joyous occasion of “National Pride Day” celebrating the 860th birth anniversary of the Man of the Millennium, the great military general, the king of kings, the Great Chinggis Khaan, whose deeds have laid the foundation of the modern-day world.

Great Chinggis Khaan is a symbol of unity and an assurance of Mongolia’s sovereignty: the spiritual golden thread of the past, the present, and the future of Mongols.

Chinggis Khaan united all Mongol tribes, established the Great Mongol Empire, bound and transcended the historical and traditional way of golden Mongol rule, and left a lasting imprint in our history whose extraordinary deeds will be forever remembered for generations to come.

The history of Chinggis Khaan is not only the history of Mongols, but it is also the history of the world.

Great Khaan and his successors stopped raging wars and conflicts among many states of Europe and Asia that plunged the vast terrains of Eurasia. “Pax Mongolica” allowed to strengthen of relations and unity among countries and people and enabled favorable conditions not only for societies to prosper and develop but also to advance their philosophies, religion, culture and arts, sciences, and trade in peaceful coexistence.

The wisdom and deeds of the Great Khaan made a lasting impact on the advancement and development of the world, who made a significant contribution to the foundation of the modern-day world and is remembered for centuries in the history of mankind.

The Great Khaan’s teachings through his great deeds and his life story on the values of Mongol unity have left a legacy for generations to be remembered for eternity.

Thus, it is imperative for us to continue to follow our Great Khaan’s teachings and wisdom, for it is our sacred duty to continue to study and promote the great history and inherent legacy to maintain the homeland of the Great Mongol Empire ever vigilant.

It is, therefore, a great tradition for the President of Mongolia to award the Supreme Decoration of the Mongolian State, the Order of Chinggis Khaan to citizens, bands, legal entities, foreign citizens, public and social servants, whose extraordinary deeds made a huge contribution in fulfilling this legacy.

This year, it is my honor and privilege to award Dr. Jack Weatherford, an American researcher, and Dr. Dorjgotov Dechingungaa with the Order of Chinggis Khaan, who have made a tremendous contribution, one for promoting the history of Mongols in a scientific and evidence-based way to the world and another for making a significant contribution to the environmental and climate studies of the soil and lands bequeathed by the Great Khaan to Mongolian people.

Professor Jack Weatherford is an internationally distinguished scholar and a researcher from the United States of America, who has published dozens of books and publications on the political history of the United States, the history and culture of Mongolia along with the history of Chinggis Khaan and Great Mongol Empire.

In 2004, Dr. Weatherford published “Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World”, becoming the New York Times bestselling author, whose book has been sold over 300,000 copies and printed into over twenty languages.

His work corrects many of the distorted misconceptions about Chinggis Khaan in the world history and proclaimed Chinggis Khaan as the great Khaan who laid the foundations for the modern-day free and open trade, exchange of knowledge and know-how, international law, diplomatic immunity, religious freedom, political system free of church and religion.

Dr. Weatherford’s book “The Secret History of Mongol Queens: How the Daughters of Genghis Khan Rescued His Empire” published in 2010, had made a valuable contribution to popularize the fact that Mongol queens and women have played a significant role and left a clear mark with their actions and wisdom in the history for centuries. While his book “Genghis Khan and the Quest for God” published in 2016, also narrates Chinggis Khaan’s value of freedom of religion, which had been introduced for the first time in the history of mankind, and how other world leaders have learned and followed Great Khaan’s example of progressive and democratic values.

Since 1998, he visited Mongolia on multiple occasions, organized more than 40 field research projects and expeditions, traveled to the historical places of the Secret History of the Mongols, cooperated with Mongolian academics, and made an important contribution to Genghis Khan studies and Mongolian studies.

Moreover, in 2010, the "Jack Weatherford Foundation" was established to support young Mongolian researchers, to correct distorted historical notions, and to spread the knowledge about Mongolian history. The foundation has done many important works in the field of Mongolian studies and grants the "Jack Weatherford Award".

Your works reviewing and evaluating the role of Chinggis Khaan, his successors, and Mongolian queens in the history of the world have re-introduced the concept about Mongolians to the modern world, increased the international value of Chinggis Khaan and the Mongolian nation, promoted Mongolian history and culture to the world and play a special role in the development of Chinggis Khaan studies and Mongolian studies. I express our gratitude to you and wish you the best of luck in your future academic endeavors.

Academician D. Dorjgotov is our famous soil scientist-agrochemical scientist, and he developed basic theoretical research on the origin, geography, classification, characteristics, fertility, and quality assessment of soil in Mongolia, and laid the foundation of soil science in Mongolia.

He worked exclusively on soil mapping, which is important for applying the results of basic soil research, and in 1975 he created and published the first soil map of Mongolia, and also created the first soil map based on satellite photography, depicting the soil typology, spatial structure, and distribution.

His research is rightfully appraised as a rare and valuable work of cartography as it made it possible to estimate all types of soil resources in our country.

Furthermore, academician D. Dorjgotov since 1984 participated and organized the work of the team of scientists and researchers who have created the first "National Atlas of Mongolia”. In 1990, he printed the first national atlas in Russian and Mongolian languages called "National Atlas of the Mongolian People's Republic", including about 300 maps and diagrams divided into 16 thematic groups. In 2009 and 2022, he led the republishing of the "National Atlas of Mongolia".

This "National Atlas of Mongolia" contains comprehensive information on the territory, administrative structure, natural-geographical conditions, natural resources, population, history, culture, agriculture, and social and economic aspects of our country. It is highly valued by professional scientists at the international level as it has become a comprehensive cartographic work of invaluable importance for research, knowledge, theory, and practice.

Moreover, he published his major works such as "Map and Atlas of the Mongolian Ecosystem" in 1995 and 2005, "Ecological Atlas of the Baikal Lake Basin" in 2015, and "Atlas of the Ecosystem of Mongolia" in 2019. It was a significant innovative step in the development of ecology, eco-geochemistry, ecosystem and environmental science, and the introduction of the results of research and development work.

Also, the research team led by academician D.Dorjgotov exclusively studied the modern issues of environmental pollution, climate, ecosystem change, and ecological-geochemical state. His team performed many important tasks and developed recommendations for technological solutions such as "Ulaanbaatar City Environment and Pollution Overview" in 1999, "Survey of soil pollution around drinking water sources in Ulaanbaatar" in 2004, "Geoecological study of Darkhan area" in 2009, "Survey of soil pollution around Ulaanbaatar city" in 2010, "Environmental and ecogeochemical research of major mining and industrial centers in the Seleng Basin" in 2015, and, the "State Standard for Maximum Permissible Amount of Soil Pollutants" in 2008.

Academician D. Dorjgotov worked diligently to prepare the succession of advanced specialized research scientists and to educate young students. During his 20 years of working as a professor and head of the department at the Mongolian State University and the Mongolian State University of Education he supervised the academic work of 20 doctors and 4 doctors of science.

Dear academician D. Dorjgotov, I would like to express my deep gratitude to you for devoting sixty years of your life to soil science, geography, cartography, and environmental studies and for your valuable contribution to the development of science in Mongolia. I wish you the best of luck in your academic endeavors.

Dear Honorable scientists and sages receiving the Supreme Decoration of the Mongolian State, the Order of Chinggis Khaan, the Mongolian government pays you great respect and perpetuates your great academic works and deeds.

Under the power of the eternal sky may the power and glory of the Great Khaan bless us Mongolians forever!"

The Supreme Decoration of the Mongolian State, the Order of Chinggis Khaan, acceptance speech by Jack Weatherford,

“Thank you, Mr. President and Distinguished Officials of Mongolia.

The greatest heroes of history have always been the lawmakers. Shakyamuni the Buddha, gave us the Dharma of Enlightenment, the Wheel of Law. Confucius devised the civil law of the family and state. Moses gave God’s laws of behavior to the Jews. Jesus spread the law to the Christians, and the final prophet Muhammad ended the era of great religious law givers.

Chinggis Khaan did not start a new religion. Instead, he gave the law of the Eternal Blue Sky granting freedom to all religions. Each religion was like one finger of God, and the Eternal Blue Sky united all of them into one -- into one dream of a united and peaceful world. The world today is still struggling to achieve that goal. We are now in the ninth century of the struggle to fulfill Chinggis Khan’s law and dream of the Great Mongolian Peace.

Nine is the most auspicious of numbers. This is the century that Mongolia can help the world move closer to the dream of Chinggis Khaan. Mongolia is the center of world history, the homeland of Chinggis Khaan, and you are the guardians of his memory and legacy. I am deeply honored that you allow me to join you in your great work.

As I flew to Mongolia this week, I watched out the airplane window as we passed Khentii, I knew in my heart that this was how the land looked on the day that Mother Hoelun brought her child into the world. The Eternal Blue Sky itself welcomed her child with a pure white hadag of snow placed across this country from end to end.

I thank you, and I pray: May the Golden Light of the Eternal Blue Sky forever bless this Sacred Nation of Chinggis Khaan.

Энэ бол Чингисийн төрсөн нутаг

Монголын сайхан орон”

On the occasion of the "World Antimicrobial Awareness Week" on 18-24 November 2022, under the ONE HEALTH concept, the very first meeting of the multisectoral committee approved by the joint order of the Minister of Health and the Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry was organized ensuring implementation of "National action plan on AMR in Mongolia for 2022-2025". The council aims to ensure implementation of the national action plan such as to detect and combat drug-resistant microbials that affect human and animal health, to prevent infection and possible outbreaks, to control the use of antimicrobial drugs, to raise awareness among the public, to improve the knowledge and capacity of the personnel in the human and animal health sector about antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and to promote appropriate use of antimicrobials.

The meeting was attended by over 20 representatives from the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry, the Medicine and Medical Devices Regulatory Agency, the

National Center for Communicable Diseases, the General Authority for Veterinary Services, the State Laboratory for Testing and Certification of Veterinary Drugs, the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization, the WHO Mongolia and other related organizations and laboratories. At the meeting, implementation of AMR actions taken by the relevant organizations according to the national action plan was reviewed, and then the committee members discussed and planned the activities to be implemented in 2023.

During the discussion, the Medicine and Medical Devices Regulatory Agency emphasized that the “Antibiotic consumption study” data for 2021 prepared by WHO methodology would be reported to the WPRO. Moreover, it was stated that the agency has started taking actions to ensure all domestic drug manufacturers to comply with GMP in 2023.

On November 22, 2022, Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong met with Mongolian Ambassador to China Tuvshin Badral.

Sun Weidong elaborated on the epoch-making significance and important outcomes of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), and introduced President Xi Jinping’s recent attendance at the G20 Summit, the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting and meetings with leaders of multiple countries. Sun stressed that with the grand blueprint of comprehensively advancing national rejuvenation through the path of Chinese modernization, China will uphold world peace and promote common development, and stay commited to promoting a community with a shared future for human. This will bring new opportunities for the common development of all countries and China-Mongolia relations. During his attendance at the two important multilateral meetings and in-depth exchanges of views with leaders of multiple countries, President Xi Jinping made China’s voice heard on global governance and Asia-Pacific cooperation and reached important consensus on bilateral relations, injecting more stability and certainty to the region and the world and deepening and substantiating the progress in the building of a human community with a shared future in China’s neighborhood.

Sun said that at the invitation of President Xi Jinping, Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh will soon pay a state visit to China, which is of great significance to the development of China-Mongolia relations. China warmly welcomes and attaches great importance to the visit, and stands ready to work with Mongolia to ensure the full success of the visit and work for the new development of the China-Mongolia comprehensive strategic partnership.

Badral extended on the successful conclusion of the 20th CPC National Congress, and said that Mongolia attaches great importance to China’s future domestic and foreign policies formalized by the 20th CPC National Congress and President Xi Jinping’s recent important visits. Mongolia is ready to actively support the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind proposed by President Xi Jinping, further deepen the bilateral relationship and make it a model of neighboring relations. President Khurelsukh’s upcoming visit to China shortly after the conclusion of the 20th CPC National Congress fully demonstrates the great importance both sides attach to Mongolia-China relations. Badral expects and believes that the visit will further enhance the friendship and mutual trust between the two countries, advance pragmatic cooperation in various fields on all fronts, and elevate bilateral relations to a new level.

China’s coal production is set to climb for the sixth year in a row, reaching a new record, as the Beijing government acts to ensure supplies in the top miner and consumer of the fuel, spurring further declines in prices.

Output could reach 4.4 billion tons in 2022, driven by faster capacity expansions at major mines, the official China Energy News said Wednesday. While Covid flareups have constrained mining, government efforts to guarantee winter supplies may lift output back to a daily record in the final two months of the year, boosting annual production by 8% from 2021.

The National Development and Reform Commission, the top economic planning agency, asked coal miners to lock in more long-term contracts with power generators at a meeting last week. The move is aimed at keeping prices in what the government sees is a reasonable range of 570-770 yuan ($80 to $108) per ton at the Qinhuangdao trading hub, far below international prices.

The price controls and increasing production have sent spot prices tumbling this week, squeezing traders’ profits, Li Xuegang, an analyst with the China Coal Transport and Distribution Association, said on a Wednesday webcast.

China’s top miner Shenhua Energy Co. slashed the procurement price for high-grade coal from smaller miners to close to 1,100 yuan per ton Tuesday, near to the level of spot settlements at Qinhuangdao port, based on association data.

Still, any recovery in demand is a long way off as the country’s industry is feeling the pain of a persistent property contraction and weaker-than-expected exports. Factories planning to send workers for longer New Year holiday breaks because of Covid may also drag down power consumption in coming months, Chao Yuke, another association analyst, said on the webcast.

By the invitation of U.Khurelsukh, the President of Mongolia, Jack Weatherford, an American scientist and a professor of anthropology, and emeritus, at Macalester College, arrived in Mongolia today.

Mongolians know him well as the author of the book “Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World”. In particular, Jack Weatherford's book "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World" published in 2004 is internationally known and has been translated into more than 20 languages.

Jack Weatherford is the New York Times bestselling author of Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World, which sold over 300,000 copies. It was also one of two books that won Amazon's 2011 audiobook contest and was named a CNN Book of the Week that year. On October 12, 2014, the book was ranked sixth in the New York Times e-book list.

Jack Weatherford wrote books named after “The Secret History of the Mongol Queens” in 2010 and “Genghis Khan and the Quest for God” in 2016. “The Secret History of the Mongol Queens” is the first book written about the daughters of Genghis Khan.

London CNN Business — Global growth will slow further in the coming year but the world will likely avoid a recession thanks to Asia’s biggest economies.

Global GDP is projected to grow by 3.1% this year, and by just 2.2% in 2023, according to the latest forecast from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Although the OECD is not predicting a recession, its forecast is more pessimistic than that of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which said last month that it expects the world economy to grow by 3.2% this year and 2.7% next year.

The “fragile prospects” for the global economy are a direct result of Russia’s war against Ukraine, which has sparked an energy crisis that has spurred inflation worldwide, the OECD said in a statement on Tuesday.

'The worst is yet to come': IMF issues stark recession warning

“Persistent inflation, high energy prices, weak real household income growth, falling confidence and tighter financial conditions are all expected to curtail growth,” it added. If energy prices rise further or energy supply is disrupted, growth could be even weaker than expected.

Growth next year is “strongly dependent” on major Asian economies, which will account for close to three quarters of the expansion in global GDP, with the United States and Europe “decelerating sharply,” the OECD said.

India is projected to have the world’s second highest growth rates, after Saudi Arabia, at 6.6% in 2022, followed by 5.7% in 2023. China’s economy is predicted to grow by 3.3% this year, followed by 4.6% in 2023.

By contrast, the United States is expected to grow by just 1.8% in 2022 and 0.5% in 2023. Growth across the 19 EU countries that use the euro is also expected to decline steeply over the next two years, from 3.3% in 2022, to 0.5% in 2023.

That the European and American economies are growing at all is partly because of government spending on energy subsidies and policies to boost investment such as NextGeneration EU and the Inflation Reduction Act, OECD Secretary General Matthias Cormann told reporters on Tuesday.

Savings accumulated by households and businesses during the initial phase of the pandemic will also help to support spending, he added.

“An end to the war and a just peace for Ukraine would be the most impactful way to improve the global economic outlook right now,” Cormann said.

The OECD expects inflation to remain above 9% this year among advanced economies. It’s then forecast to fall back to 6.6% in 2023, slightly above levels forecast by the IMF.

Major central banks aim for inflation near 2%, and have been hiking interest rates in a bid to limit price rises. But the campaign is also boosting risks to the economy by increasing debt servicing costs for households, businesses and governments.

“Higher interest rates, while necessary to moderate inflation, will increase financial challenges for both households and corporate borrowers,” the OECD said.

“Low-income countries will remain particularly vulnerable to high food and energy prices, while tighter global financial conditions may raise the risk of further debt distress,” it added.

World Bank President David Malpass told CNN recently that the organization is “worrying about a world recession in 2023,” but that the United States is “a little stronger than other economies.”

— Julia Horowitz contributed to this report.