President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev will pay a state visit to Mongolia on October 28-29. The head of state will hold talks with President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, Chairman of the State Great Khural of Mongolia Dashzegviin Amarbayasgalan and Prime Minister Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene. During the visit, it is planned to sign a number of important bilateral documents. Read about cooperation between the two countries in the material of the analytical observer of the Kazinform agency.

Diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and Mongolia were established on January 22, 1992. From May 1997 to January 2007, the Diplomatic Mission of the Republic of Kazakhstan operated in Ulaanbaatar, which in 2006, by decree of the President, was transformed into the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan in Mongolia. There is also an Embassy of Mongolia in Astana and a Consular Post of Mongolia in Almaty in Kazakhstan.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, since 1991, Kazakhstan and Mongolia have signed more than 60 bilateral treaties and agreements. In 2021, the two countries celebrated 28 years of joint cooperation - since the signing of the Treaty on Friendly Relations and Cooperation between Kazakhstan and Mongolia.

Official visits

On October 11-14, 2021, the Minister of Foreign Relations of Mongolia Batmunkhin Battsetseg paid an official visit to Kazakhstan to participate in the meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the CICA member states.

On July 4, 2024, during the SCO summit in Astana, a meeting was held between the President of Mongolia Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh and the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. At the meeting, the Head of State expressed gratitude to Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh for his constructive contribution to the successful holding of the meeting in the SCO Plus format. The President also noted that Mongolia is one of our country's important partners in Asia. We are bound by common centuries-old cultural and historical roots and traditions.

A round table on current issues of cooperation between Kazakhstan and Mongolia was held in Astana on September 20. At the meeting, the parties discussed common challenges and prospects for strategic partnership between Kazakhstan and Mongolia. Topics included strategic priorities in domestic and foreign policy, measures to develop trade and economic cooperation, and the role of diasporas in strengthening interstate relations.

— Kazakhstan and Mongolia have a long history of relations. The interaction between our countries and populations goes back centuries and is built on mutual respect and cultural closeness. I believe that, despite the geographical proximity, the bilateral potential has not been fully utilized. It is time to find new and more effective ways to improve them, — noted Askar Nursha, Deputy Director of the KISI under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Support in international cooperation

On September 28, 2018, in New York, during the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly, the Mongolian side supported the adoption of the Code of Practice for Achieving a World Free of Terrorism, prepared following the results of Kazakhstan's non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council.
On September 19-22, 2018, during the vote in the Audit Committee within the framework of the 14th session of the Asian Organization of Audit Agencies (ASOSAI), the Mongolian side supported Kazakhstan.

In turn, Kazakhstan supported the candidacy of Mongolia in the elections to the governing boards of the Asia-Pacific Statistics Institute and the Asia-Pacific Disaster Information Management and Development Center at the 75th session of ESCAP on May 27-31, 2019.In August 2019, Mongolia supported Kazakhstan's initiative to transfer the CICA chairmanship to Kazakhstan, and on October 11-12, 2021, in Astana, represented by Mongolian Foreign Minister Batmunkhin Battsetseg, took an active part in the ministerial meeting of the CICA member states.
Also in 2021, the Mongolian side, by sending an official note, confirmed its support for Kazakhstan's entry into the IAEA Far East Group. Mongolia also supported Kazakhstan's candidates for the UN Human Rights Council for 2022-2024.

On October 6-7, 2023, the VII Central Asian International Forum was held, within the framework of which a Memorandum of Cooperation was signed between KISI (Kazakhstan) and ISI (Mongolia). This marked the beginning of joint events, research, exchange of work, holding scientific conferences and round tables on topics of mutual interest.

Director of the Center for Political Research of the Institute of Philosophy, Political Science and Religious Studies of the Science Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan Aidar Amrebayev emphasizes the commonality of the two countries in many issues.

- For Kazakhstan, Mongolia is not a foreign country. Kazakh-Mongolian relations are constructive, since Mongolia is located between two major powers - Russia and China, and Kazakhstan is a middle state located between major international players. Therefore, the foreign policy doctrine of Mongolia and Kazakhstan has common features, since we have to maneuver flexibly between the interests of major powers in a certain way, - the expert said.
He added that currently in Mongolia, as in Kazakhstan, political modernization is taking place, associated with the accelerated economic development of the countries.

- These are the same tasks that Kazakhstan sets for itself. In addition, Kazakhstan is a mining country, like Mongolia. They also have developed livestock farming. Our President sets the task of transition from an extractive form of economy to a manufacturing one, we pay great attention to the development of processing sectors, especially in agricultural products. Also, Mongolia today adheres to the ideology of openness, attracting foreign investment, technology, - emphasized Aidar Amrebayev.

Trade relations

There is a bilateral Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technical and Cultural Cooperation between the countries. In November 2020, the 8th meeting of the intergovernmental commission was held online. And the 9th meeting was held in Ulaanbaatar in 2023.
According to the Ministry of Trade of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Mongolia for January-August 2024 amounted to $83.9 million.

Exports from Kazakhstan to Mongolia in January-August 2024 reached $83.3 million. The main exports from Kazakhstan to Mongolia are: telephones - $39.3 million (with a share of 47.1%), tobacco products - $17.6 million (21.1%), chocolate and other finished food products containing cocoa - $3.2 million (3.8%), buttermilk, yogurt, kefir - $2.5 million (2.9%), bread and flour confectionery - $2.1 million (2.5%), computers - $2.1 million (2.5%), cyanides - $1.9 million (2.3%), extracts, essences, concentrates of coffee, tea, mate, coffee substitutes - $1.8 million (2.1%), petroleum products - $939.8 thousand (1.1%) and other goods.

Imports to Kazakhstan from Mongolia in January-August 2024 amounted to $586.1 thousand. The main import goods from Mongolia to Kazakhstan: uncancelled postage stamps, stamped paper, similar types of securities - $360.1 thousand (with a share of 61.5%), hosiery - $51.6 thousand (8.8%), centrifuges, equipment and devices for filtering liquids or gases - $27.2 thousand (4.6%), sweaters, pullovers, cardigans, knitted vests - $15.8 thousand (2.7%), carpets and woven floor coverings - $12.7 thousand (2.2%) and others.

Cultural and humanitarian cooperation

On September 22, 2021, Mongolia hosted an exhibition of books and photographs dedicated to the 30th anniversary of Kazakhstan's independence with the participation of representatives of government agencies, local media and the Kazakh diaspora in Mongolia.
In 2023, it was also reported that Kazakhstan and Mongolia were planning to open a joint museum as part of bilateral work in the fields of education and science, information and archeology, and the study of the history of nomads.

— There is a historical and cultural connection between our countries.Now we are developing a construct related to Jochi in Kazakhstan. In Mongolia, their national and cultural identity also relies on the legacy of Genghis Khan, - said the director of the Center for Political Studies Aidar Amrebayev.

New road between Kazakhstan and Mongolia

The presence of regular air and road communication is of great importance for bilateral relations between the countries. Thus, Kazakhstan and Mongolia are planning to build a new road to expand cultural and economic ties, which will connect the two states. The new road route will pass through the cities of Ust-Kamenogorsk and Ridder, as well as the settlement of Tuekta (Russian Federation), with an exit to the border of Mongolia. The Kazakhstan section of the proposed route from the city of Ust-Kamenogorsk to the border with the Russian Federation with a total length of 189 kilometers has already been built: specialists will carry out major and medium repairs on 62 kilometers of the road. The construction of the new road will significantly reduce travel time, improve transport links between Kazakhstan and Mongolia and will be an important step in strengthening economic and cultural ties. As Aidar Amrebayev notes, this step will serve to diversify transport corridors between the countries.

- It is necessary to jointly develop the Middle Corridor, in which the countries of Central Asia and China participate. For Mongolia, this would also be a good step to diversify transport corridors. If before this, Mongolian policy was oriented to the East, connections with South Korea, Japan, China.Now, participation in such a large transcontinental corridor through Kazakhstan to the European Union is quite promising for the Mongolians. Therefore, I think that the upcoming visit of the President to Mongolia will be quite interesting, fruitful, rich, and diverse in initiatives and proposals, the expert expressed his opinion.

Recall that in July, at a meeting with the President of Mongolia Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev announced the need to increase the number of flights between Kazakhstan and Mongolia, and also called for considering the possibility of building a highway that will significantly reduce travel time.

 

Author

Sholpan Zhabayeva

translated by Qazalem