On the first day of engagements of his Mongolia visit, Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh held bilateral talks with his Mongolian counterpart Lt Gen Saikhanbayar Gursed in Ulaanbaatar on September 06, 2022. He also called on the President of Mongolia and Chairman of State Great Khural. The Raksha Mantri also inaugurated a Cyber Security Training Centre, built with assistance from India, and laid the foundation stone of the India-Mongolia Friendship School, to be constructed with Indian assistance.

Bilateral talks

After reaching Mongolia on the night of September 05, 2022 to become the first Indian Defence Minister to visit the country, the hectic day of engagements began for Shri Rajnath Singh with a ceremonial guard of honour at the Ministry of Defence in Ulaanbaatar. It was followed by delegation-level talks between the Raksha Mantri and his Mongolian counterpart. They discussed effective & practical initiatives to further expand bilateral defence engagements and deliberated on regional & global issues of mutual interest.

Both Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to fully implement the Strategic Partnership based on mutual trust & understanding, common interests and shared values of democracy & rule of law. The two Ministers also reiterated their resolve to reinvigorate the India-Mongolia Joint Working Group (JWG), which will meet in India later this year.

Call ons

Shri Rajnath Singh called on the President of Mongolia & Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces Mr Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, wherein they recalled their strong bonhomie and previous interaction in 2018 when together they laid the foundation stone for the ongoing Oil Refinery project being undertaken by assistance from India. He also met the Chairman of State Great Khural of Mongolia Mr G Zandanshatar.

Cyber Security Training Centre

Another highlight of the day was the inauguration of Cyber Security Training Centre, built with assistance from Government of India, at National Defence University in Ulaanbaatar by the Raksha Mantri. The Raksha Mantri was briefed about the facilities at the Centre by the officials. He also interacted with the personnel of the Mongolian Armed Forces being trained at the Centre.

India-Mongolia Friendship School

Shri Rajnath Singh, along with Minister of Education and Science of Mongolia, laid the foundation stone of the India-Mongolia Friendship School, which is being established with the assistance from Government of India.

It may be recalled that India established diplomatic relations with Mongolia in 1955. Mongolia has declared India as a strategic partner and “spiritual neighbour”. In 2015, “strategic partnership” between the two Asian democracies was declared during visit of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. Defence is an important element of bilateral engagements with Mongolia.

Mongolia's Tavan Tolgoi-Gashuunsukhait railway is scheduled to be officially put into operation on September 9 after being delayed from the previous date on July 1, according to local media and sources.

An opening ceremony of the 267-km railway, which started construction in December 2019, will be held on September 9. Tavantolgoi Railway is the client, while Bodi International is the EPC contractor for this project, according to polit.mn.

The railway had launched the first trial run on July 9, according to Sxcoal's earlier report.

Mongolian officials have calculated that 20-50 million tonnes of coal is expected to be transported annually once the rail line is operational, and the cost of transporting coal will drop from $40/t to $8/t.

(Writing by Emma Yang Editing by Harry Huo)

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In August, the gold purchase of the Bank of Mongolia (BoM) was 2,915 kg, raising the BoM’s total precious metal purchase of 2022 to 12.6 tons. The figure shows a decrease of 3 percent as compared with the same period of the previous year.

This year, the BoM branches in Darkhan-Uul and Bayankhongor aimags bought 1,274.2 kg and 884.8 kg of precious metals respectively.

The average price of BoM’s purchase of 1 gram of gold was MNT 189,702 last month.

Prime Minister of Mongolia L. Oyun-Erdene has arrived at the Russky Island to participate in the 7th Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia.

The Prime Minister was welcomed at Vladivostok International Airport by the Ambassador Extraordinary Plenipotentiary of Mongolia to the Russian Federation O. Enkhtuvshin, Deputy Governor of Primorsky Krai A.E. Nazdratenko, Head of the Primorsky Krai Department of International Cooperation A. Yu. Starichkov, and Vladivostok city ​​governor K.V. Shestakov

O. V. Belozyorov, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board of 'Russian Railways' JSC, paid a call on the Prime Minister of Mongolia, who is participating in the Eastern Economic Forum. During the meeting, the Prime Minister said that the Government of Mongolia is accelerating the construction project on the eastern vertical railway, and noted that such projects will be a new basis for intensifying bilateral and trilateral trade and economic cooperation not only in Mongolia, but also in the region.

In the conclusion of this meeting, the parties came to a decision to work for the modernization, construction and expansion of the railway sector of Mongolia within the framework of the Revival of Border Ports, set out in the Government's 'New Revival Policy'. Issues on improving the capacity of Zamyn-Uud port or creating a double-track railway were discussed with the Russian side. The Russian side informed that in the near future it will start the construction of the eastern vertical railway and intensify the expansion and modernization of the 'Ulaanbaatar Railway' JVC.

Furthermore, the parties reached an agreement to cooperate with the company on the 'Bogdkhan' railway project, which aims to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution in Ulaanbaatar.

Today, Prime Minister L. Oyun-Erdene is taking part in the plenary session of the 7th Eastern Economic Forum. It is the first time that Mongolia is participating in the EEF at the level of the Prime Minister.

South Korea is seeking to strengthen cooperation with mineral-rich Mongolia, to lessen its reliance on China.

South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin visited Mongolia 28-30 August, and met his Mongolian counterpart B.Battsetseg. During Park’s visit, the two nations agreed to actively boost cooperation on global supply chain issues, especially in relation to rare earth elements.

Mongolia—located between China and Russia—is one of the top ten resource-rich countries in the world. The country is important in the context of global supply chain restructuring for South Korea.

Since Korea established diplomatic relations with Mongolia in 1990, the two countries have continuously expanded cooperation in the fields of economics, trade, and culture. The bilateral relationship was upgraded to a “strategic partnership” in 2021.

Presently, the key minerals used by South Korean enterprises such as lithium, cobalt, and graphite mostly come from China.

The move by South Korea with Mongolia is also being seen as a response to the U.S.- Inflation Reduction Act that stipulates that starting in 2023 when tax credits kick in, 40 percent of critical minerals used in car batteries must originate within the United States or from a country that it has a free trade agreement with. This percentage increases every year until 2027 when 80 percent of the critical minerals must meet the requirement.

South Korea is concerned that it won’t be able to enjoy the credits from the United States if it cannot drop its dependence on China. Moreover, the South Koreans are also worried that communist China may weaponize its supply of resources, posing a threat to Korea.

The Bank of Korea’s monthly survey statistics released on June 30 shows that South Korea’s average dependence on China for imports of core minerals such as copper, aluminum, and zinc is as high as 67 percent.

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry also released a report in early August, pointing out that the dependence on imports from China for raw and intermediate materials has increased significantly in the main industry sectors such as batteries and semiconductors. Among them, the imports of two key raw materials for battery manufacturing, lithium oxide, and lithium hydroxide, reached a whopping $1.17 billion in the first half of this year, surpassing 2021’s total imports of $560 million.

According to the statistics of the Korea Trade Association in late August, Korea’s import dependence on China for car battery raw materials has been deepening in recent years, with 64.9 percent of lithium hydroxide imported from China in 2018, rising to 83.8 percent last year, and 84.4 percent from January to July this year. During the same period, cobalt import dependence on China rose from 53.1 percent in 2018 to 64 percent in 2021, then to 81 percent between January and July this year. (The Epoch Times)

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce of the Kingdom of Thailand Jurin Laksanawisit is paying an official visit to Mongolia on September 5-7 at the invitation of Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia B.Battsetseg.

Within the framework of the visit, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia B.Battsetseg and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Trade of the Kingdom of Thailand Jurin Laksanawisit signed the ‘Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of a Joint Committee on Trade between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia and the Ministry of Commerce of the Kingdom of Thailand’, and organized the first meeting of the committee.

During the meeting, there was a broad exchange of views on the future objectives and activities of bilateral cooperation, and a discussion was held on expanding relations in the fields of economy, agriculture, tourism, technical cooperation, and logistics.

The trade turnover between the two countries has been increasing in recent years and the sides held talks on intensifying the establishment of the ‘'Agreement for Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion’' and ‘'Agreement on the Mutual Promotion and Protection of Investments’' with a view to further accelerating the cooperation in trade.

A goal of increasing the bilateral trade turnover to USD 100 million and escalating the accumulated or increased investment to USD 1.5 billion by 2027 is set out in the ‘5-year plan for cooperation between Mongolia and Thailand in 2022-2027’. In this context, they exchanged views on the development of mutually beneficial trade and economic cooperation based on the potential of good political relations.

The two sides reiterated their commitment to continue working closely together to further deepen their cooperation within the scope of the United Nations and other international organizations.

Foreigners who tried to cross the Mongolian border with fake visas were found and deported.

Five citizens of Nigeria, who arrived for the purpose of travel, tried to enter Mongolia at the Chinggis Khaan International Airport using fake visas.

According to the laws of Mongolia, foreign citizens who obtain and forge visas or residence permit with false documents will be denied to enter the country for 5 years.

H.E. Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy, held a meeting with Odonbaatar Shijeekhuu, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Mongolia to the UAE, to explore opportunities to strengthen trade and economic cooperation between the two countries. The meeting took place at the Ministry’s headquarters in Dubai.

During the meeting, the Minister of Economy emphasized the UAE’s commitment to solidify its economic and trade partnership with Mongolia, in fields of shared interest in a way that supports both countries’ developmental agendas as well as their sustainable economic growth.

H.E. Bin Touq said: “Mongolia is a promising market with which we aspire to increase trade and investment exchanges, especially in sectors such as tourism, aviation, logistics, agriculture and animal food trade, and food security. The partnership further aims to boost private sector cooperation between the two sides by highlighting the available opportunities in our markets, exploring new collaboration mechanisms and facilitating the exchange of expertise.”

Furthermore, H.E. reviewed the UAE’s ambitious strategy to attract talent and competencies from all vital sectors, in addition to its advanced infrastructure, attractive business environment, and the recently issued flexible legislations, as well as the incentives offered to companies to encourage FDI in the country’s promising market. The discussions also shed light on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPA) model pursued by the UAE, through which the country has signed three agreements so far, with India, Indonesia, and Israel. Through these agreements, the UAE aims to expand its partnerships to reach strategic global markets, in line with the Principles of the 50 and the UAE Centennial 2071 goals to build a highly competitive national economy based on knowledge and innovation.

The UAE is Mongolia’s number one Arab and GCC trade partner as of 2021. The non-oil trade between the two countries witnessed a 119 per cent growth in Q1 2022 compared to the same period in 2021. During this period, the UAE’s non-oil exports to Mongolia saw an 81 per cent growth, led by medical and pharmaceutical industry supplies, construction materials, and food materials such as tea, petrol, and mineral oil.

Mongolia’s Ambassador D.Gansukh met with Slovakian business representatives led by President of Slovakia-Mongolia Chamber of Commerce on September 5.

The Slovakian business delegation will visit Mongolia on September 20-27. During their visit, the Mongolian National Chamber of Commerce and Industry plans to sign a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation with the Slovakia-Mongolia Chamber of Commerce, and organize bilateral meetings with relevant ministries.

The visit aims at intensifying trade and economic cooperation between the two countries and increasing ties between businessmen, and it will be an important activity to ensure the implementation of the agreement between the foreign ministries on economic cooperation, said the Ambassador.

Mongolia’s Honorary Consul to Slovakia P.Slavik attended the meeting.