At its regular meeting today on May 4, the Cabinet made a decision to increase the frequency of flights being conducted by the national flag carrier, MIAT Mongolian Airlines, en route Ulaanbaatar-Frankfurt to five times per week.

However, as the flight frequency will create a larger deficit for the airline, the Government will provide a subsidy for the company. Corresponding officials were also tasked to introduce possible solutions for liberalizing the country’s air transport sector, and issuing VAT refunds to foreign tourists at next week’s Cabinet meeting.

The Cabinet’s decision to increase the flow of air transport was made in connection with a meeting that took place between Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene and representatives of the country’s tourism sector last week.

Mongolian Health Ministry ended its COVID-19 briefing from 1 May, 2022, citing declining case counts and hospitalizations, the state’s high vaccination rate. It has been two years since the first imported case of COVID-19 was reported on March, 2020 in the country. The Ministry assured that updates would continue online, but added that an in-person briefing would be held should it be necessary.

To date, Mongolia has reported more than 4.6 thousand confirmed COVID cases since that day. A total of 2179 residents died from the virus.

Almost 67 percent of Mongolia’s population of 3.4 million has received two COVID-19 vaccine doses, 1,037,670 people have received a third dose and 121,581 have received a voluntary fourth shot.

With a high vaccination coverage and declining daily infections, Mongolia has essentially returned to normal life. It has resumed in-person classes for all educational institutions and fully opened its borders to foreign tourists.

Separately, the nationwide medical checkups started from 1 May, 2022 for early detection of most diseases such as cancer, diabetes as well as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases which leading causes of death among Mongolians.

A total of MNT 60.8 billion is allocated from the State budget to the Health Insurance Fund to carry out this program.

Japan's Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa has called on Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh to work for international solidarity in talks about the fighting in Ukraine.

Hayashi began his visit in Mongolia on Sunday. Mongolia shares a border and friendly relations with Russia.

Hayashi's meeting with Khurelsukh was on Monday.

The Mongolian president told Hayashi that his country finds an immediate ceasefire and de-escalation of the situation crucial. He also explained that the country has been providing Ukrainians with humanitarian assistance.

Hayashi noted Russia's military aggression to Ukraine constitutes a breach of international law.

He said Russia's acts shake the foundation of the whole international community, including Asia. He stressed that unity is crucial.

Regarding North Korea, the two confirmed that Japan and Mongolia will continue to cooperate in their response to the country, which includes the call for an immediate resolution of the abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea.

Hayashi, who has been visiting Central Asia and Mongolia, is scheduled to return to Japan on Monday.

He plans to visit the Pacific island nations of Fiji and Palau over the weekend to exchange views on the situation in Ukraine and on responses to China's increasing maritime activities.

On April 30, Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene held a meeting with representatives of over 120 companies that run operations in the tourism and hospitality industry.

Previously, the Prime Minister held a meeting with tourism sector representatives in February 2021. After a year - on February 14, 2022, a policy discussion was also held under the theme, ‘New Revival Policy - Tourism’, following the announcement of the opening of the country’s borders to tourists and visitors from abroad.

At the start of the meeting, Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene highlighted that the country’s economy is going through a difficult time as challenges are being faced not only in the country but also globally, and expressed that the Government will pay special attention to the tourism sector as part of the measures to eliminate factors limiting the country’s development. He then informed the participants about works being carried out by the government in the sector as well as the current state of the situation, challenges being faced, and outlook.

Due to operations being halted over the last two years, it has become highly necessary for the sector to receive support from the government, noted the representatives.

In 2019, the sector made an income of MNT 1.6 trillion, creating monetary flow amounting to 7.2 percent of the country’s GDP. Due to the halt in operations, the tourism sector’s income decreased by over 70 percent worldwide in the last two years. As it is only from very recently that signs of recovery began to show, a thorough discussion took place on results of previous meetings as well as issues that can be resolved in the near future.

The participants informed the Prime Minister about various issues that are causing difficulties in operations, such as suspension of bank accounts due to non-payment of immovable property tax as well as others, and the need to postpone payment of social insurance contributions that have accumulated in 2020 and 2021. They also put forth requests and suggestions, which included taking appropriate measures to reduce the prices of tickets for flights being conducted by the national flag carrier to Frankfurt, and resolving certain issues that are faced when dealing with public organizations in charge of tax, social insurance, and monitoring and inspection.

At the end of the meeting, Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene announced that starting from this week, discussions taking place during the first hour of all Cabinet meetings will focus on preventing the rise in price and shortage of key commodities as well as issues concerning the tourism sector.

Noting that the sector’s operations affect many issues, he highlighted that the Government will put all its efforts into boosting the sector’s recovery in the next two years.

Issues such as the suspension of bank accounts due to non-payment of tax, and having MIAT Mongolian Airlines increase their number of flights and reduce their ticket prices will be resolved by the end of this week, he said.

With the recent completion of his six-year appointment, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Mobicom Corporation LLC Tatsuya Hamada will soon be returning to his home country. While living in Mongolia and serving as the company’s director for over the last six years, he closely spent time with the country itself and its people. In recognition of his contributions to the development of the country’s communications sector and socio-economic development, Mr. Tatsuya Hamada was awarded with the Order of the Polar Star, the highest state honor of Mongolia, as according to a decree issued by former President Kh.Battulga in May 2021. Furthermore, per the decision made by the Government, he was also appointed as Tourism Envoy of Mongolia and presented a certificate of envoy by Minister of Environment and Tourism B. Bat-Erdene last March. Thus, we took an interview from Mr. Tatsuya Hamada before he returned to Japan.

-Congratulations for being appointed as Tourism Envoy of Mongolia. What were your first impressions when you first came to Mongolia?

-I first came to Mongolia six years ago. The image I had in my mind at the time was those often found in travel photography books–a small boy with rosy cheeks standing in front of his cows, sheep, and horses. The moment I got off the plane, however, I was very shocked to find out that Ulaanbaatar city was entirely different from what I had expected. It was a large modern city with many tall buildings. Although I indeed looked at the country from the business sector’s perspective, I have a quite clear memory of the moment when I learned about the significant development of mining businesses and the sector of communications and IT at the time.

-You worked in our country’s communications sector for six years, which is not that short of a time. How do you see the sector’s development in Mongolia? Could you also tell us about what you think development trends will be like in the future?

-I would first like to talk about how it has been at Mobicom. When I came to Mongolia six years ago, the 3G network was most commonly found in the country. 4G was introduced in Mongolia from 2016. And now, we are holding talks on introducing 5G services. The 4G network was introduced in Japan from around November to December in 2011, while it was after 4-5 years that it was introduced in Mongolia. As for 5G, while it was introduced around March to April last year in Japan, it is currently expected to be introduced here in Mongolia by the end of this year. Like so, the development of Mongolia’s communication sector is nearly on the same level as those in Japan. I believe it is a great achievement.

As Mobicom’s 4G network has been introduced nationwide, in 330 soums of all 21 aimags, people began to use data to access the internet from their mobile phones. Smartphone usage has increased to about 85 percent from 43 percent six years ago. This is a considerably high statistic compared to the rest of the world. Mongolia is on the same level as developed countries for its development of the information and communications sector despite not being considered as an economically developed country.

-You've just mentioned that Mongolia is on the same level as developed countries for its development of the IT and communications sector. What do you think will become more important in order to further develop this sector?

-The use of various applications is increasing as daily usage of smartphones rapidly grow. I believe that the spread of the coronavirus has changed our lifestyle and the business environment through countermeasures such as lockdowns, which served as an impetus for the introduction and development of a variety of applications. Slight changes have also been made to certain functions of Mobicom Group's ‘MONPAY’ mobile application, and introduced in other countries. KDDI Corporation, a major shareholder of Mobicom, highly commends Mobicom's capabilities to develop applications - and talks and negotiations are underway on placing outsourcing orders in the near future. This means that not only Mobicom, but also Mongolia's information technology sector is becoming world-class and recognized internationally. I am confident that it will continue to make progress non-stop. In the near future, I believe that the IT sector will reach to the level where it is considered as important as the mining and tourism sectors in the country.

-Personally, I think that the field that "shined" the most during the COVID-19 pandemic has been the sector of information technology. Could you please give a few words to youth who are looking to work in this field?

-From 2017 to 2022, I used to voluntarily organize a certain activity called ‘Mobicom Class’. During those times, I was often asked questions such as, "I want to join Mobicom in the future, what should I do?" or "Now that I am studying this field, do you think I should continue to go with this career path?" My answer to these types of questions is "Will you be deciding your future life with what you have learned at the university?"

There are many young Mongolians studying abroad and acquiring MBAs and PhDs, but it is also important to talk about the future of what we can do after joining the specific company, rather than telling the entirety of what they have done in the past. It takes four years to study at a university, and six years if you decide to continue to study for a master's degree, but the most important thing to keep in mind is how long you expect to work for the company. In other words, the future depends on much more than this. So I would like to tell them not to decide the next 30 years of their life with just these 4-6 years. Although I think I have become specialized in this field to some extent due to being in the industry for 25 years, my university major was European history. However, I have no regrets about my major, and it was after joining the company that I learned all my current business skills, knowledge and know-how.

-Let me change the subject for a moment and ask you about your appointment as a Tourism Envoy. Is there anything you have in mind for the promotion of Mongolian tourism in Japan?

-In this era, it is possible to become acquainted with Mongolia through guidebooks, unlimited social media, and YouTube videos. However, I was given the opportunity to deeply experience it with my own five senses. I want to pass on to the Japanese people what I perceived when I saw it with my own eyes and heard it with my ears, such as the sounds of horses and the smell of grasslands. Prior to the pandemic, direct flights between Japan and Mongolia were conducted daily, which took about 5 to 6 hours with no issues. Thus, I want to introduce the Japanese people to how they can experience the natural beauty and formation that is not found in Japan. Mongolians are very hospitable people. There were many times I was able to experience this great hospitality, which gave me such an incredible feeling that I cannot describe with words.

On top of this, I was also born with a Mongolian "passport" (or a Mongolian spot which is a type of birthmark). All Japanese people are born with a blue spot. Of course, this is not a diplomatic passport, but I would like to note that the countries of Mongolia and Japan are close in terms of culture, society, and living standards.

-When do you plan on coming back to Mongolia next time? And what would you like to do the most?

-I want to come to the country during the Naadam Festival in July. For the past two years, the Naadam Festival was not celebrated due to COVID-19 restrictions.

When I go to Naadam festivals being celebrated in rural areas of the country as well as in the city, I love the warm atmosphere that I am greeted with, and the kind welcome and conversations that take place when I enter any nomadic household that I do not know at all. So I definitely wish to come around that time.

-Thank you.

Mongolia began providing electronic signatures to all citizens aged 16 and up on Monday, according to the country's General Authority for State Registration.

The electronic signatures will be provided to citizens of the aforementioned ages for a period of five years, said the authorities.

In 2020, the Mongolian government announced its five-year plan to build a "digital nation."

Mongolia is an East Asian country with a population of 3.4 million, of which 2.2 million are 16 years of age or over.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi on Sunday indirectly urged his Mongolian counterpart Batmunkh Battsetseg to join international pressure on Russia in response to its aggression in Ukraine.

In a meeting in Ulaanbaatar, Hayashi told Battsetseg that Moscow's invasion of Ukraine violates international law and shakes the foundation of international order also in Asia, and therefore global solidarity is strongly required, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi (L) and Mongolian Foreign Minister Batmunkh Battsetseg hold talks in Ulaanbaatar on May 1, 2022. (Photo courtesy of Japan's Foreign Ministry)(Kyodo)

Battsetseg "gave explanations based on Mongolia's position," the ministry said, apparently reflecting Ulaanbaatar's reluctance to align with Western nations that have imposed severe economic sanctions on Russia.

Besides conveying that position, it was not known how she responded to Hayashi's request, except saying it is important to immediately bring about a cease-fire and ease the tense situation in Ukraine, according to a Japanese government official.

Mongolia, a landlocked country in East Asia sandwiched by China and Russia, has long been highly dependent on the two big powers in terms of energy supplies, trade and even electricity especially in the western part, according to the Japanese ministry.

In early March, Mongolia abstained from voting on a U.N. General Assembly resolution condemning Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine, which ended up being adopted with the approval of 141 out of the 193 members of the United Nations.

After their first in-person meeting as foreign ministers, Hayashi and Battsetseg signed an agreement for 260 million yen ($2 million) in Japanese aid to host young Mongolian government officials at graduate schools in Japan.

Given that Mongolia has close ties with North Korea, the ministers agreed to maintain their cooperation in dealing with Pyongyang's missile and nuclear development, as well as the issue of its abductions of Japanese nationals in the 1970s and 1980s.

Later Sunday, Hayashi visited the Shine Mongol Harumafuji School, founded in 2018 with support from Harumafuji, a Mongolian-born former sumo wrestler who rose to the sport's highest rank of yokozuna.

The Japanese foreign minister also had talks with Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene.

Hayashi is on a five-day trip from last Thursday, during which he also visited Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

On Monday, Hayashi will meet with Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh before leaving for Japan.

Nationwide preventive checkups and early detection campaign started from yesterday, May 1.

During the opening ceremony, Minister of Health S.Enkhbold emphasized, “This one-year nationwide campaign has three key goals. Contribution to the post-COVID-19 rehabilitation treatment is a priority. Secondly, we aim to make it a habit for every citizen to have regular preventive and early-detection checkups, and thirdly to reduce the incidence of five most common deceases in Mongolia.”

Medical checkups are being conducted in urban hospitals and mobile health clinics in remote areas.

In Mongolia, the leading causes of morbidity are gastrointestinal diseases, respiratory diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and urogenital diseases, injuries, and poisoning. The leading causes of death are cardiovascular diseases, cancer, injuries, poisoning, gastrointestinal disorders and respiratory diseases.

While multiple European leaders have publicly proclaimed they won’t buy Russian gas in rubles as Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded, 10 EU countries are technically going along with Putin’s plan, Hungarian official Gergely Gulyas told public radio on Sunday. According to Gulyas, these countries’ leaders aren’t admitting this in order to be seen as “being a good European.”

Gulyas said that Hungary has opened a euro account with Russia’s Gazprombank, which then converts payments into rubles before transferring them to suppliers in Russia. This system allows European buyers to comply with Putin’s demand, made in late March, that “unfriendly” countries switch to Russia’s national currency to buy its natural gas.

“There are nine other countries using the same payment scheme, but because today the idea of being a good European also means that the leaders of those countries are not honest when speaking either in the international arena or to their own people, the other nine countries won’t say that they are doing the same thing,” said Gulyas, who serves as Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff.

“There should be no doubt in anyone’s mind that countries importing raw materials from Russia use exactly the same method to pay for Russian gas,” he added.

It is unclear which EU countries Guylas was referring to. Russian energy giant Gazprom has already shut off supplies to Poland and Bulgaria after both refused to pay in rubles, but a Bloomberg report last week stated, as Gulyas did, that 10 of the bloc’s member states have already set up accounts with Gazprombank, and four have actually paid for Russian gas using this mechanism.

Hungary depends on Russia for all of its gas imports, and has therefore opposed EU sanctions on this critical commodity. Gulyas reiterated this commitment to Russian energy and opposition to Brussels’ sanctions regime on Sunday.

“We mustn’t adopt sanctions with which we primarily penalize ourselves instead of those we want to sanction,” he said, referring to soaring energy costs throughout Europe. While the government in Budapest has condemned Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, Guylas said that it would “continue to buy our energy at the cheapest possible price” to offset any costs on the Hungarian people.

May 1 (Reuters) - Russian gas producer Gazprom (GAZP.MM) said it was supplying natural gas to Europe via Ukraine on Sunday in line with requests from European consumers.

Requests stood at 97.2 million cubic metres (mcm) for May 1, up from 71.7 mcm on Saturday.

Reporting by Reuters; editing by Guy Faulconbridge