(OPINION by Olkhonud Bayarkhuu)
Mongolia’s one of the important bases of foreign policy is to strengthen ties with leading countries around the world and ensure their economic interest in Mongolia; it has been implementing successfully. In the framework, Mongolia is working to level up foreign relations with Japan to the 21st century’s “Comprehensive relationship”. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Mongolia and Japan in 1972, cooperation has been continued to develop steadily. The 40-year history since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries can be divided into two, each with 20 years. During the first 20 years, the two countries’ political system was different, but it was possible to begin a cultural relationship and maintain a normal atmosphere of communication. Since 1990, Mongolia mainly focused on economic cooperation as it began pursuing a multilateral independent foreign policy by choosing democracy and open market. In the last 30 years, in which bilateral relations between Mongolia and Japan had developed dramatically, Japan had continued a policy of supporting Mongolia’s democracy in bilateral relations and internationally since 1991. Mongolia had also set a goal of expanding relations and cooperation with Japan as one of its foreign policy priorities, and this has been implemented by the Government of Mongolia. In this regard, I would like to express my views on why Japan is important to Mongolia, why it should be a third neighbor, and how Japan perceives our interests. A little introduction. A neighbor is a country that is geographically has a common border. Russia and China are Mongolia’s direct neighbors. So the concept of expanded neighbor is geopolitical. There is another important point which is a strategic neighbor. Putting the these two together, we call it the third neighbor. The year 2019 will remain in history as the third-party strategic relationships has been balanced over the time. As with the new phase of Mongolia- U.S relations (signed strategic partnership agreement), the Mongolia-Japan relations have significantly moved ahead as well. The recent political high-level visits of Mongolia and Japan encouraged to maintain the frequency of official talks and make it more often. President Battulga Khaltmaa and Prime Minister Abe Shinzo hold summit meetings regularly. Prime Minister of Mongolia Kurelsukh Ukhnaa visited Japan in late 2018 and attended the enthronement ceremony of the new Emperor of Japan in 2019. After attending the ceremony, he also met Prime Minister Abe Shinzo. In a statement of Prime Minister Khurelsukh’s visit in 2018, “The sides evaluated the implementation of the “Mid-term Action Plan” and mentioned that the relationship has been growing stronger in a broad range of fields such as trade, economy, culture, and public exchange”. Expressing satisfaction with the strengthening relations within the framework, Mongolia notes the relationship with Japan as a “region of politics, security, and defense.” It proves that Japan is the third neighbor of Mongolia in terms of politics. Mongolia supported Japan’s efforts to consolidate the “Free and Open Indo-Pacific Strategy” proposed by Mr. Abe. Foreign Minister of Japan T. Kono visited our country in the summer of 2019. It has been 48 years since the establishment of the Mongolian-Japanese diplomatic relations. After Mongolia has transitioned to a democratic society, the relations between the two countries have been consistently developing. From third neighbor countries, Japan has established the Strategic Partnership with Mongolia first (2010) and also the first country to establish free trade agreements (the Economic Partnership Agreement or EPA). Implementation of the agreement is moving forward one step further as Mongolia successfully hosted the Japan-Mongolia Business Forum, “Invest in Mongolia” in Tokyo. Defense cooperation between Mongolia and Japan had improved significantly in 2019. Takayuki Onozuka, Vice Chief of Staff of Japan Ground Self Defense Force, paid a visit to our country. The defense cooperation between the two countries was further enhanced by the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding in 2012. It expanded the level and direction of cooperation. As part of Japan’s Capacity Building Assistance Program, we have successfully identified two main areas: military engineering and a military hospital. In 2014- 2016, the first phase had started to increase military engineering capabilities, and in 2017, the second stage commenced with joint training and internship. In the future, the two countries will work in many areas, including training military personnel and experience in peacekeeping. It would seem right to give some explanations on why relations with Japan are so important to our country. The following logic emerges when we consider the power balance in the world, the general atmosphere of international affairs, regional relations and cooperation, as well as the external environment around Mongolia. Mongolia is actively working with the United States, Japan, and Western Europe, which are considered to be third parties to prevent the country from becoming too close to Russia and China, not to be too dependent on its northern neighbor and to support the democratic process in Mongolia. In Mongolia, foreign policy can be considered a de facto neutral foreign policy. China, Russia, as well as Japan and the United States are intensifying their efforts to attract Mongolia. Mongolia classifies them as the two direct neighbors and the third strategic parties.

Published Date:2020-02-18