On the sidelines of his participation in the 7th Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene on September 7 paid a courtesy call on President of the Russian Federation V.V.Putin.

While expressing gratitude to the Prime Minister for accepting the invitation and participating in the Eastern Economic Forum, the Russian President emphasized that the two countries have successfully co-implemented mega projects such as Ulaanbaatar Railways, Erdenet Mining Corporation, etc., and expressed his interest in jointly implementing mutually beneficial projects in such scale. In particular, he highlighted the construction project on the gas pipeline connecting Russia and China through the territory of Mongolia and noted the possibilities of cooperation in the energy sector. It was also underscored that the sides reached an agreement on the supply of petroleum products at a stable price in the long term.

During the economic forum, the Prime Minister presented some major port, energy, and industrial development projects and programs of regional significance that are set out in Mongolia’s ‘New Revival Policy’, while calling on the investors to invest in Mongolia.

Russia accounts for Mongolia’s majority of imports of petroleum products. After a series of negotiations held between the Ministry of Mining and Heavy Industry of Mongolia and the Rosneft Company, not only the border price of AI-92 fuel, which had reached USD 1,285, was reduced to USD 830 but also it was agreed to keep the price stable until the end of 2022. As a result of another talks held during this forum, it was agreed to supply AI-92 fuel at a stable price until 2027, and diesel fuel at a 10 percent discount.

During the meeting, Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene emphasized the ample opportunities for implementing large-scale regional projects in the energy sector based on Mongolia’s advantage of being ranked first in the world in terms of land area per capita, while presenting the progress of the ongoing talks on the construction of Eg River hydropower plant and renovation of other power plants.

It was decided to resolve the issues surrounding the Eg River hydropower plant project, which has been stalled for many years, together with the United Nations and set up a research team of experts to conduct an assessment of the impact on the water resources of the Selenge River and Lake Baikal.

The Russian side expressed its support for the implementation of the Eg River hydropower plant project and the expansion of the Thermal Power Plant-III.

The construction project on the gas pipeline connecting Russia and China through the territory of Mongolia has been considered of high importance for regional development. In this regard, the parties discussed paying special attention to ensuring the active implementation of the project and putting it into operation in 2029.

A US judge said Rio Tinto Plc must face an investor lawsuit accusing the Anglo-Australian mining giant of concealing delays and huge cost overruns at a Mongolian copper and gold mine owned by Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd, in which Rio Tinto has a majority stake.

In a 134-page decision made public on Tuesday, US District Judge Lewis Liman in Manhattan said funds advised by Pentwater Capital Management LP, Turquoise’s largest minority shareholder with about a 10% stake, may pursue a proposed class action on behalf of Turquoise shareholders from July 2018 to July 2019.

The judge dismissed some claims against Rio Tinto and various executives, and all claims against Montreal-based Turquoise. His decision is dated 2 September.

Pentwater accused Rio Tinto and Turquoise of fraudulently assuring that the $5.3 billion Oyu Tolgoi mine was “on plan” and “on budget,” even as it was falling up to 2-1/2 years behind schedule and coming in as much as $1.9 billion over budget.

Shareholders of Turquoise said their investments lost close to three-quarters of their value as the truth became known. The shareholders are seeking damages from Rio to recoup their losses.

In letting Chicago-based Pentwater seek to hold Rio Tinto liable for some of Turquoise’s statements, Liman cited claims that the companies had an “extraordinarily close relationship,” and that Rio Tinto had “near total control” over the mine.

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“Plaintiffs do sufficiently allege that Rio knew of delays or cost overruns shortly before the class period and, instead of trying to fix them or disclose them to investors, attempted to silence those who spoke out about them,” Liman wrote.

Rio Tinto said Pentwater’s claims were unfounded and said it had consistently complied with its disclosure obligations.

“Pentwater’s claims are completely without merit, and we are confident that, when all the facts are considered by the court, or if necessary by a jury, Pentwater’s claims will be rejected,” the miner said in a response to the court decision sent to Reuters.

Turquoise and its lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Pentwater’s lawyer Salvatore Graziano declined to comment.

Earlier this month, Rio Tinto agreed to pay about $3.3 billion for the 49% of Turquoise it does not already own.

Turquoise owns 66% of the Oyu Tolgoi mine, and Mongolia owns the rest.

In January, Rio Tinto and Mongolia settled a long dispute over the mine’s economic benefits, in an accord that waived $2.4 billion of debt owed by Mongolia’s government.

The case is In re Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd Securities Litigation, US District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 20-08585. (CNN)

Exercise Gobi Wolf 2022, a multinational civil and military training exercise, commenced with an opening ceremony and expert academic discussion in Bayankhongor, Mongolia, on 5 September.

The six-day exercise is part of the Pacific Resilience Disaster Response Exercise and Exchange (DREE) program, which focuses on interagency coordination and foreign humanitarian assistance. Gobi Wolf is coordinated by the Mongolian National Emergency Management Agency and U.S. Army Pacific.

Exercise Gobi Wolf originated in 2009 in Ulaanbaatar with a training scenario involving a hazardous materials spill. Now in its tenth iteration, the exercise will focus on a simulated earthquake scenario 400 miles southwest of the capital city.

The DREE consists of an expert academic discussion, table top exercise and field training exercise. These three main events are designed to develop those comprehensive measures and to test disaster responses involving interagency coordination.

During the EAD’s two-days of presentations, participants will collaborate with experts in their field and analyze various disaster situations. Following the EAD, small groups will actualize the concepts and practices discussed and generate response concepts in the TTX. Simultaneously, the week-long field training exercise will include hazmat response, search and rescue and mass medical care.

Historically, the Gobi Wolf exercise involves countries beyond Mongolia and the United States and this year follows suit with its approximately 300 participants. Delegates from Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the United Kingdom and Vietnam are attending this year.

U.S. military and civilian participants include experts from the active duty and reserve components of U.S. Army Pacific and Pacific Air Forces, Alaska and Washington National Guards, U.S. Forest Service, and Alaska’s City of Palmer Fire & Rescue, as well as exercise planning and facilitations from the Defense Security Cooperation Agency’s Institute for Security Governance.

BENGALURU (India) - The Philippines and Mongolia swept their way into the FIBA U18 Women's Asian Championship 2022 Semi-Finals after rousing wins in the group phase's last day, Wednesday at the Koramangala Indoor Stadium.

Gilas Women were the first to clinch a spot in the penultimate stage following a huge rout of Maldives, and the Mongolians followed suit after beating Jordan. Both squads finished the preliminaries with immaculate 3-0 records.

The two will now enjoy the luxury of rest as they await for their respective foes, which will be among Samoa, Jordan, Malaysia, and Thailand.

All four teams will play in the Qualification to Semi-Finals on Friday. The Samoans and the Jordanians will face off against one another as the long-time Southeast Asian rivals are set to duke it out in the other bracket.

RESULTS

Samoa 52-39 Thailand

Philippines 110-28 Maldives

Malaysia 65-51 Hong Kong

Mongolia 48-36 Jordan

DAILY RECAP

Samoa bucked a slow start to beat Thailand in the first game of the day, 52-39, to redeem themselves from the loss to the Philippines the night before.

Kira-May Filemu led the assault once more with 23 points, including 6 in an 8-0 run to end the first quarter in their favor, 13-10, and sit in the driver's seat all the way through. She also had 14 rebounds, 4 steals, and a block.

Malia Jae Ruud provided another double-double with 15 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals for the Samoans, who led by as much as 19 points in the victory to clinch the second seed in Group A with a 2-1 record.

Samoa will take on Jordan in the Qualification to Semi-Finals. The latter bowed to Mongolia, 48-36, and saw themselves finish at third in Group B following a three-way tie at 1-2 with Malaysia and Hong Kong.

The Jordanians were in it early in the game but allowed the opposition to score 10 straight points in the second quarter, and never recovered.

Namuundari Namkhainyambuu spearheaded Mongolia with a game-high 12 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists as they continued their magical run in the tournament the country last participated in 20 years ago.

Khongorzul Altanzul and Nyamjav Nandinkhusel had 8 points each, and combined for 24 of the team's 51 rebounds in the victory that clinched the top seed in Group B to complete half of the semis picture.

They followed the Philippines, who topped Group A after keeping Maldives winless in three games through a huge 110-28 dismantling.

Louna Ozar led the way with 22 points. Ryhanna Calvert had 17 points, while Liane Ashley Loon chimed in 14 markers as the two collected 14 of Gilas Youth's sky-high 40 steals in the 82-point rout.

Ana Aminath Simad finished with 15 points to lead Maldives, who will be taking on Hong Kong in the Classification 7-8 game.

Hong Kong ended up fourth and last in Group B after absorbing a 65-51 defeat at the hands Malaysia in the third game of the day.

The Malaysians were led by Elaine Chong Hui Lin, who finished with 15 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, a steal, and a block. Zi Jie Er and Jia Huey Yen provided 13 markers apiece as they finished second in the group.

They will take on Thailand in the Qualification to Semi-Finals. The latter was the third-seed in Group A with a 1-2 record.

TOP PERFORMERS

Louna Ozar (PHI) 27 EFF 22 points, 11-15 FG, 3 rebounds, 4 steals

Ryhanna Calvert (PHI) 27 EFF 17 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 7 steals

Liane Ashley Loon (PHI) 25 EFF 14 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists, 7 steals

Malia Jae Ruud (SAM) 23 EFF 15 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals

Wing Yiu Kong (HKG) 23 EFF 13 points, 11 rebounds

Elaine Chong Hui Lin (MAS) 22 EFF 15 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, 1 block

Kira-May Filemu (SAM) 21 EFF 23 points, 14 rebounds, 4 steals, 1 block

Khongorzul Altanzul (MGL) 21 EFF 8 points, 14 rebounds, 6 steals

Nyamjav Nandinkhusel (MGL) 15 EFF 8 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal

Mongolia’s parliament on August 30 approved key changes to the structure and composition of the Cabinet proposed by Prime Minister Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamrsai. Ten new members were added — all but one from parliament — to the expanded 21-member Cabinet, the largest ever in Mongolia’s history.

The Cabinet reshuffle happened very quickly and was intended to strengthen Oyun-Erdene’s position and give him legislative support to push his liberalization and privatization agenda forward. This change is critical in the lead-up to the 2023 budget vote in November, because Mongolia’s economy has not yet fully recovered from the pandemic downturn.

The boosted Cabinet will also help Oyun-Erdene advance constitutional reforms to reduce presidential power and update election rules. Oyun-Erdene is expected to accelerate the implementation of his New Revival Policy, which aims to stimulate pandemic recovery and address Mongolia’s vulnerabilities as a landlocked country.

Oyun-Erdene noted that expansion of the Cabinet was necessary to meet the goals of the country’s New Revival Policy and 2050 Vision Initiative. The New Revival Policy, introduced in December 2021, aims to add more energy sources, integrate border ports with China, build downstream industrial capacity, start a new city south of Ulaanbaatar, reduce red tape, and eliminate corruption. This aligns with the country’s long-term development plan and Oyun-Erdene’s flagship program, the 2050 Vision Initiative.

The expanded Cabinet comprises 21 members covering 16 ministries (the full line-up is below). Three ministers with no portfolios were added to oversee Ulaanbaatar affairs, physical education and sports, and port revitalization.

Amarbayasgalan Dashzegve, secretary-general of the ruling Mongolian People’s Party (MPP), was appointed Cabinet secretariat chief, replacing veteran politician Nyamdorj Tsend. Amarbayasgalan will be key in executing major reform policies. Amarbayasgalan is in his early 40s and is regarded as one of the rising leaders of the MPP to succeed Oyun-Erdene in the future.

Oyun-Erdene is expected to name a new MPP secretary-general soon, who will be a power broker and key person in the upcoming general elections in 2024.

The new Cabinet includes 13 ministers who concurrently hold positions as members of parliament (MP). This follows the Constitutional Court’s August 15 decision to repeal a constitutional clause limiting the number of lawmakers in the Cabinet to four.

By filling his Cabinet with more parliamentarians, the prime minister is seeking to strengthen his position politically and legislatively. These powerful 13 ministers in the 76-member parliament would be key to advancing controversial reforms and a liberalization agenda. Although the MPP maintains a supermajority, it has powerful internal factions that are not always aligned with the prime minister’s agenda. Surprisingly, the construction, foreign, health, culture, defense, and environment and tourism ministers kept their seats in spite of the fact they are non-MPs.

In other key appointments, Khurelbaatar Chimed was selected as minister of economy and development and Uchral Nyam-Osor as minister of digital development and communications. Both positions were created last year and had remained unfilled since that time. Khurelbaatar is the former finance minister and will now lead revising the investment law and setting up a new Investor Protection Council. Uchral is expected to drive Mongolia’s digital transformation and move more government services online.

Oyun-Erdene named Ganbaatar Jambal to lead the mining sector. Ganbaatar is a pro-business politician known for championing the reduction of government intervention in the economy. Although a mining licensing regime has yet to be finalized, revisions to the mining law are expected later this year. Former Mining Minister Yondon Geleg was tapped to lead the state-owned Erdenet copper mine company.

Pro-business new Energy Minister Choijilsuren Battogtokh will likely attempt to introduce some deregulation measures, particularly in the renewable energy sector, targeting wind and solar producers. Partial electricity tariff liberalization, which was pushed by former minister Tavinbekh, will continue to face stiff public opposition in view of rising inflation. Tavinbekh is now a deputy minister at the energy ministry.

New Cabinet Lineup

Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamsrai, Prime Minister

Amarbayasgalan Dashzegve, Chief of Cabinet Secretariat (newly appointed)

Amarsaikhan Sainbuyan, Deputy Prime Minister

Sukhbaatar Jamiyankhorloo, Minister in charge of Ulaanbaatar City and Traffic Congestion (newly appointed)

Bat-Erdene Badmaanyambuu, Minister for Olympism, Physical Culture and Sports (newly appointed)

Khurelbaatar Chimed, Minister of Economy and Development (newly appointed)

Battsetseg Batmunkh, Minister of Foreign Affairs

Javkhlan Bold, Minister of Finance

Nyambaatar Khishgee, Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs

Bat-Erdene Bat-Ulzii, Minister of Environment and Tourism

Saikhanbayar Gürsed, Minister of Defense

Enkh-Amgalan Luvsantseren, Minister of Education and Science of Mongolia

Byambatsogt Sandag, Minister of Road and Transportation Development (newly appointed)

Nomin Chinbat, Minister of Culture

Ganbaatar Jambal, Minister of Mining and Heavy Industries (newly appointed)

Sarangerel Davaajantsan, Minister for Labor and Social Protection (newly appointed)

Bolorchuluun Khayangaa, Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industries (newly appointed)

Uchral Nyam-Osor, Minister of Digital Development and Communication (newly appointed)

Choijilsuren Battogtokh, Minister of Energy (newly appointed)

Enkhbold Sereejav, Minister of Health

Munkhbaatar Begzjav, Minister of Construction and Urban Development

(Vacant), Minister of Border Port Revitalization (newly created)

Mongolia's foreign trade turnover increased by 32 percent year on year to 13.4 billion U.S. dollars in the first eight months of this year, official data showed Wednesday.

According to the Mongolian Customs General Administration (MCGA), the Asian country registered a surplus in foreign trade balance as exports exceeded imports by around 2.2 billion dollars.

Mining products accounted for more than 80 percent of the mineral-rich country's total exports in the January-August period, the MCGA said.

Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister of Mongolia Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamsrain discussed the current state of bilateral relations in trade, the economy, humanitarian and other spheres on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.

"Economic ties are developing, and trade is growing. We have major projects, which we are interested in developing, such as the Ulaanbaatar Railway, as well as enterprises extracting mineral resources and metals. Now we are talking about the possible implementation of a major infrastructure project: the supply of Russian gas to China via Mongolia," President Putin said.

"Just an hour ago, the Rosneft CEO reported to me that agreements were reached during his working trip to Mongolia on expanding cooperation in this area. As far as I know, you have coordinated all issues related to the supply of oil and oil products," Putin said.

"We are satisfied with the level and nature of relations that have developed between Russia and Mongolia. A meeting with the President of Mongolia is planned to be held very soon in Uzbekistan, where we expect to also hold a trilateral summit with the President of China," Putin stated.

The President of Mongolia, the Mongolian National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the International Women’s Federation of Commerce and Industry, and The Asia Foundation organized a national forum on “Enhancing Women’s Participation in Economic Development”. The hybrid event was attended by over 800 participants, including representatives of Mongolia’s government, financial sector, CSOs, private sector, women entrepreneurs, international donor organizations, and embassies to discuss issues and potential pathways to increase women’s participation in Mongolia’s economy. The forum was supported through The Asia Foundation’s Women’s Economic Empowerment Program, and funded by Global Affairs Canada.

Audience at National Forum in Mongolia on Increasing Women’s Participation in the Economy

The high-level forum demonstrated growing interest among policymakers around crucial issues impacting women’s economic empowerment in Mongolia and provided an important opportunity to develop concrete recommendations. During the forum, participants committed to implementing policies to increase women entrepreneurs’ access to finance, including developing a minimum quota for women to ensure equal access to government-facilitated loans and strong support for a new law on increasing women entrepreneurs’ participation in the economy.

At a panel discussion on developing a gender-inclusive financial sector, Tsolmon Gantuya, deputy project manager for The Asia Foundation, highlighted some of The Asia Foundation’s efforts to create a more gender inclusive financial sector with partners including the Mongolian Sustainable Finance Association. Ms. Gantuya noted, “Gender-lens screening is now a mandatory approach for global investors and international financial institutions as a framework of SDG 5. Promoting a gender-inclusive financial sector will not only support women entrepreneurs but also enable many opportunities to attract investment and financing from global financial institutions at affordable rates.”

Speakers on stage at National Forum in Mongolia on Increasing Women’s Participation in the Economy

During a presentation on women’s economic empowerment The Asia Foundation Country Representative in Mongolia, Mark Koenig, remarked, “The Asia Foundation Mongolia has a strong history of working on a range of projects related to gender equality and women’s economic empowerment in close collaboration with government, civil society, and donor organizations. Based on our experience, this multisectoral approach is essential and we are grateful to the President of Mongolia Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh for gathering such a diverse range of stakeholders at today’s forum to bring attention to the crucial issue of women’s economic empowerment in Mongolia.”

Mongolia country representative, Mark Koenig, speaks at National Forum in Mongolia on Increasing Women’s Participation in the Economy

The Asia Foundation is a nonprofit international development organization committed to improving lives across a dynamic and developing Asia. Informed by six decades of experience and deep local expertise, our work across the region is focused on good governance, women’s empowerment and gender equality, inclusive economic growth, environment, and climate action, and regional and international relations.