He has earlier arrived in Ulan Bator with an official visit. "We value the fact that Mongolia considers developing cooperation with Russia among its most important foreign policy priorities. We confirm our goal to use the accumulated potential in a most effective manner to expand military and military-technical cooperation," Shoigu said at talks with his Mongolian counterpart Nyamaagiin Enkhbold.

According to the Russian defense minister, Russian-Mongolian relations can be described as traditionally good-neighborly. "They [bilateral relations] have a long history and develop consistently in the economic and humanitarian sphere. Our countries have similar approaches to resolving the most pressing issues on the internaitonal agenda," Shoigu added.

He also expressed gratitude for Mongolia's active participation in events organized by the Russian Defense Ministry in 2018. "Among them are celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the Red Army, Moscow Conference on International Security, the session of the Council of Defense Ministers of CIS [Commonwealth of Independent States] countries, International Army Games and International Military-Technical Forum 'Army'," Shoigu said noting that this is already his fourth meeting with Enkhbold this year.

"It is pleasant to note that the agreements reached at our talks in Moscow and Kyzyl are already being implemented. We are ready to exchange opinions on relevant issues of cooperation in the military and military-technical spheres," Shoigu said.