Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at a joint news conference following talks with Foreign Minister of Mongolia Batmunkh Battsetseg, Moscow, June 1,2021

Ladies and gentlemen,

We have finished talks with my Mongolian colleague, Ms Battsetseg.

Our talks were traditionally warm, friendly and trust-based. Our good-neighbourly ties rest on a long history of fruitful interaction and solidarity in periods of crisis, including during World War II.

I would like to point out our mutual resolve to continue strengthening our ties in the spirit of the Treaty on Friendly Relations and Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which our presidents signed in Ulaanbaatar in September 2019.

This year we will celebrate a landmark event, the 100^th anniversary of diplomatic relations between our countries. We have coordinated a large-scale plan of joint celebrations, and today we have noted that it is being implemented successfully.

In March of this year we marked the 40^th anniversary of the joint Soviet-Mongolian space mission. Immediately after this news conference, we will hold a ceremony to present the Order of Alexander Nevsky to pilot-cosmonaut Jugderdemidiin Gurragchaa, President of the Mongolia-Russia Friendship Society, Hero of the Soviet Union and Hero of Mongolia.

We also spoke in favour of stimulating the activities of the Russian-Mongolian Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation. Its co-chairs held a meeting, via videoconference, in March 2021. An in-person plenary meeting of the commission is scheduled to take place on the basis of a protocol that has been coordinated by the co-chairs.

Talks are underway between Mongolia and the Eurasian Economic Commission on the possible signing of a free trade zone agreement, which will help boost our economic ties.

We discussed our bilateral interaction in international organisations, specifically the UN and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OCSE), as well as at a number of forums in Asia Pacific.

We exchanged views on the initiatives on the establishment of the so-called Indo-Pacific Region, which are being advocated by the United States, Australia and Japan. We pointed out that this idea is openly confrontational and is aimed at eroding the open and inclusive cooperation mechanisms that took decades to create around the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

We also discussed issues related to our cooperation within the framework of Mongolia’s activities in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

We talked about our countries efforts to deal with the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. Mongolia can report considerable progress in this sphere, and we are delighted that Russia has contributed to this achievement.

I would like to thank Madam Minister for a substantive conversation that will be instrumental in the further development of strategic partnership between Russia and Mongolia.