Ambassador: Deepening Sino-Mongolian friendship

Mongolia and China are friendly neighbors bound by a long history.

There have been ups and downs over the long course of interactions between the two nations, however the bilateral relations witnessed a rapid and stable development in the last two decades.

A new era of an intensive cooperation kicked off with the renewal of the "Treaty on Friendly Relations and Cooperation" in 1994.

Since then bilateral ties have been successfully upgraded to new levels in a considerably short span of time, from the good-neighborly and friendly relations in 1998 to the good-neighborly and mutually trusting partnership in 2003 and to the strategic partnership in 2011.

The decision to upgrade bilateral relations to strategic partnership stemmed from the strategic importance of geographical condition of both countries that share 4,700-km-long border and from the rapid expansion of cooperation in a wide range of areas.

Political relations of the two countries are strengthening with frequent exchanges of high-level visits and meetings of top leaders, and regularized interactions between the parliaments and political parties on a regular basis.

High-level interactions this year alone include a meeting between President Ts. Elbegdorj and President Xi Jinping during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit, Parliament Chairman Z. Enkhbold's meetings with Xi Jinping and NPC Standing Committee Chairman Zhang Dejiang during and after the annual meeting of Boao Forum for Asia, Deputy Speaker R. Gonchigdorj's meeting with Vice-President Li Yuanchao at the China-Eurasia Expo, and Deputy Speaker M. Enkhbolds' meeting with CPPCC Vice-Chairman Wang Jiarui during the China-Northeast Asian Expo.

Moreover, Ts. Oyundari, general secretary of the Mongolian Democratic Party, visited China while Zhao Leji, head of the CPC's Organization Department, and State Councilor Yang Jiechi paid official visits to Mongolia.

Such contacts at high level have played an important role in strengthening and deepening political trust and mutual understanding.

Trade and economic cooperation has been the most dynamic component of Sino-Mongolian relations.

In 2012, trade with China accounted for 53 percent of Mongolia's overall trade while China's direct investment constituted 33 percent of the total foreign investment Mongolia received.

Rapid growth in economic cooperation has been achieved due to the complimentary natures of the economies.

China's preferential loans and development aid provide favorable opportunities to implement projects with direct benefits to the Mongolian people.

Defense is another area that has been witnessing a strong development in recent years.

The annual consultation on defense and security issues has been held since 2004, and joint military exercises between the two armies has become a regular event.

The recently concluded military-technical cooperation agreement is the latest example of ever-deepening mutual trust and understanding between the two nations.

Bilateral cooperation in cultural, educational and humanitarian fields is also becoming more active.

The number of Mongolian students who study in China, including those with government scholarships, is increasing year-by-year.

In order to further deepen friendship and mutual understanding of our citizens, the two sides have taken concrete measures that expand people-to-people exchanges.

For instance, in 2009 and 2010, Mongolia invited 120 children from the earthquake-affected Chinese provinces of Sichuan and Qinghai for rest and recuperation. In 2012, 60 outstanding youths from China visited Mongolia.

The Chinese side received 260 youths in 2009 and 2011, and this year again is preparing to receive another 100 youths from Mongolia. In 2012, the two sides mutually organized the cultural month events in their capitals.

We consider that strategic partnership relations not only mean enlarged, lasting and stable bilateral cooperation in all fields, but also an active interaction on regional and global affairs.

Mongolia and China have been successfully cooperating in the frameworks of the UN and regional forums including the ASEM, ARF, CICA and the SCO.

I express our appreciation to the Chinese side for supporting Mongolia's aspiration to play a more active role in international affairs and to get broadly involved in regional multilateral cooperation mechanisms such as APEC, East Asia Summit and China-Japan-ROK trilateral cooperation.

Apart from the above-mentioned fine examples of successful cooperation, there are plenty more opportunities to further boost our bilateral cooperation. In other words, the development of our relations is yet to reach its peak.

Relevant authorities and enterprises should work more actively in order to make better use of the conducive policy and legal environment the two governments created.

The writer is the Mongolian Ambassador to China