On 10-12 April 2023, SCO Secretary-General Zhang Ming visited Ulaanbaatar at the invitation of Foreign Minister of Mongolia Batmunkh Battsetseg.

Zhang Ming met with President of Mongolia Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh and Foreign Minister Batmunkh Battsetseg, exchanged views with Deputy Foreign Minister Gombosuren Amartuvshin and attended an international analytical conference on current issues and the SCO outlook, which was organised by the National University of Mongolia jointly with respected analytical centres.

President Khurelsukh welcomed the SCO Secretary-General’s visit to hold practical discussions on Mongolia’s views and ideas about cooperation with the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and expressed appreciation for the achievements the SCO has attained in recent years. He pointed out that Mongolia had been contributing to various SCO events since 2004, when Mongolia became an observer state. In the current complicated and volatile international situation, Mongolia intends to comprehensively use its geographical advantages to take part in a wide range of practical cooperation spheres within the framework of the SCO, such as agriculture, energy, transport and infrastructure, in order to contribute to the development of the SCO region.

The SCO Secretary-General thanked the Mongolian party for the invitation and the warm welcome and noted that his visit had reaffirmed his belief in Mongolia’s interest in cooperation within the SCO framework. Mongolia was one of the first non-founding countries to join the SCO Family. It has held the organisations’ observer status for 19 years and has advanced many positive initiatives contributing to its development.

Zhang Ming updated his Mongolian colleague on the SCO countries’ cooperation in such important areas as politics, security, economy, cultural ties and international exchanges, and pointed out that the SCO was open for cooperation with Mongolia in these areas. He expressed the hope that Mongolia would expand its involvement in SCO activities in the interests of mutual preferential relations, mutual advantage and development, which would give a fresh impetus to peace, security and stability in the region.

In his address at the international conference, the SCO Secretary-General focused on informing delegates from Mongolia’s academic and diplomatic establishments and from the SCO member states about the SCO’s basic principles and development achievements, which had a positive effect on the audience.