Taking part in the meeting on the Russian side were Aide to the President Yury Ushakov, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment – Chair of the Russian part of the Intergovernmental Russian-Mongolian Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation Alexander Kozlov, Minister of Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov, Minister of Energy Sergei Tsivilev, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrei Rudenko, and Russian Railways Chief Executive Officer – Chairman of the Executive Board Oleg Belozerov.
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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr Prime Minister, friends,
I am delighted to see you. We met only recently and had the opportunity to discuss our current affairs across many spheres of priority significance for Mongolia and Russia. Overall, we are very pleased that the situation regarding the development of our cooperation is highly positive. [Next] year marked the 105th anniversary of our diplomatic relations.
I would like to underscore once again that we are grateful that the President of Mongolia joined us in marking the May 9 holiday and attended the celebrations of Victory in the Great Patriotic War held in Moscow.
As I have said, our bilateral relations are developing progressively. The first eight months of this year demonstrated positive trends in trade, which increased by 7.9 percent. It should be noted that nearly 8 percent growth in trade is a very good indicator in the current situation.
In June this year, Mongolia signed a provisional trade agreement with the EAEU member states. I hope very much that this will not only serve as a positive sign but will also create favourable conditions for expanding our trade and economic ties. We hope to hold a meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation in Ulaanbaatar by the end of this year. Mr Kozlov, who chairs the Russian part of the Commission, regularly briefs me on our joint work. Our Government actively supports everything that is being done in this sphere.
We pay special attention to our interaction in the trilateral Russia-Mongolia-China format. Today, I had the pleasure to meet with your colleague, the Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China [Li Qiang]. We discussed the possibility of expanding our cooperation in the trilateral format.
I have no doubt that your visit to Moscow is an invaluable opportunity to discuss current issues on the bilateral agenda and to coordinate our goals for the near future.
We are delighted to see you. Welcome.
Prime Minister of Mongolia Gombojavyn Zandanshatar: Mr President,
It is a great pleasure to meet with you once again in Moscow. First and foremost, I would like to convey the warm greetings of the President of Mongolia.
Our meeting during the 10th Eastern Economic Forum in September was significant and has played a major role.
I recall our September meeting with great warmth and wish to express my profound gratitude for your personal attention and immense contribution to the development and strengthening of the friendly, neighbourly relations between our countries. We have all spoken today, and we highly value your invaluable contribution to the advancement of our bilateral relations, particularly in matters of debt, petroleum products, and other issues.
Next year, we plan to hold joint celebratory events marking the 105th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Mongolia and Russia.
I would note that our Intergovernmental Commission is actively working to enhance cooperation in all spheres, including trade, the economy, science, infrastructure, culture, and education. The Mongolian side will shortly appoint Mr Khassuuri Gankhuyag as co-chair; he assumed the position of Deputy Prime Minister of Mongolia last week. He is also a graduate of the Soviet and Russian school and speaks Russian with great fluency.
I wish to inform you that our country is preparing to host the first Forum of Regions of Mongolia and Russia in early December in Irkutsk. All business representatives will participate. Today, we held very productive meetings, working efficiently and constructively. Regional and cross-border cooperation plays a crucial role in relations between Mongolia and Russia, which is why we attach special importance to it. As part of the forum, we plan to approve a medium-term programme for the development of interregional cooperation for 2026–2030, which, in our view, will elevate bilateral regional relations and cooperation to a new level.
A further important topic for us remains the issue of mutual payments, settlements, and trade. Today, our finance ministers have nearly reached an agreement on resolving these matters.
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