Mongolia is not overly religious, conservative, or liberal. Mongolians have a reputable history of having an open-minded attitude towards all religions. Historical records reveal that there were 12 Buddhist temples, 2 Islamic mosques, and a Christian church in the ancient capital city of the Great Mongol Empire in the Karakorum.

If you plan to visit any temples or monasteries, there are some social etiquette tips to avoid offending the locals. Such as, if you walk around a stupa or prayer wheels always walk in a clockwise direction. long-sleeved clothing is appropriate. Remove any hats, sunglasses before entering any monasteries and temples. Photography is not allowed in most monasteries.

Be respectful and do your best to go with the flow in order to have a good time. Religion in Mongolia has been traditionally dominated by the schools of Mongolian Buddhism and by Mongolian shamanism. Historically, through the Mongol Empire, the Mongols were exposed to the influences of Christianity (Nestorianism and Catholicism) and Islam, although these religions never came to dominate. Gradually, during the socialist period of the Mongolian People's Republic (1924-1992) all religions were prohibited, but with the transition to the republic in the 1990s, there has been a general revival of faiths.

The latest survey was conducted that 53% of the Mongolians identify as Buddhists, 38.6% as not religious, 3% as Muslims (predominantly of Kazakh ethnicity), 2.9% as followers of the Mongol shamanic tradition, 2.2% as Christians, and 0.4% as followers of other religions. Other sources estimate that a significantly higher proportion of the population follows the Mongol ethnic religion (18.6%).

Mongolia has a world beating record on combating the coronavirus with currently no recorded deaths. Moreover, the Mongolian Government has suspended all commercial flights into the country for the last six months. All the more noteworthy then that last week a Mongolian Airlines plane took off from London Heathrow bound for Ulaanbaatar for the first time since 2013. Seven years ago, the passengers were the military band of the Mongolian army heading home after a successful debut at the Edinburgh Tattoo. This time on board were five representatives of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) with a mission to Mongolia of crucial significance to the nation’s economy. Experts from the U.K., USA, Japan, China and Russia were considering whether Mongolia should be removed from the organisations grey list.

Based in Paris the FATF is an intergovernmental organisation founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7 to develop policies to combat money laundering. Since 2000 FATF has maintained a blacklist and a grey list. Like the blacklist, countries on the FATF grey list represent a much higher risk of money laundering and/or terrorism financing but unlike those on the blacklist they have formally committed to working with the FATF to develop action plans that will address their deficiencies.

Dulguun Bayarsaikhan writing in the UB Post in October 2019 summed up Mongolia’s recent relations with the FATF which resulted in the nation being added to the grey list for the second time in 2019.

‘Mongolia entered FATF’s grey list in 2013, but narrowly slipped out of it with specific conditions as the country managed to meet some of the requirements and made specific commitments.

In 2016, FATF strongly urged Mongolia to enforce the laws with a set of recommendations. The recommendations included enhancing economic transparency, improving oversight on the financial market, and holding those who break laws accountable. Complying with the recommendation, the Mongolian government formed the National Council to Combat Money Laundering and Terrorism in April 2017.

However, failing to produce the desired outcomes, Mongolia was put under strong scrutiny from the FATF.’

The importance of getting off the grey list to the people of Mongolia is clear from the fact that last week the Prime Minister, Finance Minister and Chairman of the State Great Khural (Parliament) separately made presentations to the FATF officials socially distanced behind screens in the Kempinski hotel. Mongolia has borrowed heavily on the world’s bond markets over the last decade and between 2021 and 2024 much of this will come to term. Refinancing costs will be much more affordable if the country can establish a reputation for financial integrity and honesty.

The signs look promising that the Government under Prime Minister Khurelsukh which has recently achieved a stunning election victory is prepared to walk the walk as well as talk the talk. Substantial progress seems to have been made on implanting the necessary technical regulations. There is also the need to ensure that for the first time there are the institutions with the resources available to implement the law and the fearless independence to do so. This is surely in the interests of the Mongolian people but also Mongolian as well as foreign investors. Ministers know that the proof of the pudding is in the eating though and have also set up a special unit within the Cabinet office to speak directly with international investors who have been the victims of fraud and money laundering. There are a number of well documented cases of wrongdoing which thanks to Mongolia’s free press have received some attention within the country itself. The issue of the Zasag Chandmani Mine is one that also needs to be resolved. British investors are owed $50m+, which they have been trying to recover for a long time, whilst the Mongolian owner of the project has evaded arrest and fled the country. Such stories detract from the incredible success of Mongolia’s entrepreneurs in establishing a thriving private sector in just thirty years with many dynamic companies boasting both substantial growth and impeccable business practices.

Mongolia also needs to put behind it the jibe of ‘Hotel Mongolia ‘which is a reference to a number of foreign investors who in dispute with powerful business interests have found themselves put behind bars. It would be a gesture of strength and goodwill for example if the British Australian businessman Mo Munshi who is in poor health could be released having completed half of his seven-year sentence.

Mongolia has the potential to be a great democratic success story and deserves the full support of the international community. The amazing success in combating the Coronavirus is the world’s underreported story of 2020. The imminent opening of a new international airport and a new rail line into China will strengthen the country’s infrastructure. Coking coal transported from the Gobi area into the Chinese market will now have a significant price advantage over Australian exports. The price of copper essential to the development of green energy is rising which is good news for the flagship mine at Oyu Tolgoi operated by Rio Tinto. The project could alone account for nearly a third of national output by 2027. When I visited the mine as the plane took off in a snowstorm from Ulaanbaatar I got chatting to the passenger sitting next to me. He was an engineer of about 30 who had been brought up in the Ger district at the edge of the capital and had won a scholarship. Now he had a well paid position of real responsibility at Oyu Tolgoi and had a family of his own. That has to be a success story for all involved.

Furthermore, with gold priced at over $2,000 per ounce, Mongolia should prioritise policies and initiatives which stimulate the sustainability of this sector so that the country’s gold reserves held by international banks for safe-keeping can stand tests of probity and help to strengthen the legitimate wealth of the nation which can be borrowed against to finance development projects. There are still gold investments made by international investors which remain blocked by the inconsistent application of policy and regulation. There is also the real social issue concerning the welfare of up to 100000 artisanal gold miners which must be addressed by all involved in the industry. As elsewhere economic conditions are currently tough, but most analysts predict significant growth in 2021. Pride in the nation means that many qualified Mongolians return from study and professional work abroad to make their own contribution to development. The Government was elected on a social democratic platform and there is a healthy debate about the boundaries between state intervention and the market and the best way to combat poverty and expand opportunity. The new Parliament has already held an Investors Roundtable which will help dialogue going forward. The people are weary of corruption and it is worthy of note that no less than four former Mongolian Prime Ministers have recently received jail sentences in relation to this.

The 2020’s could be a decade of rising prosperity for Mongolia with a rapid rise in GDP per capita from the current $4500 per head. The imminent decision to remove Mongolia from the grey list will be a real boost. If Mongolia is to become a magnet for much needed foreign investment it is essential that the country fully commits to a new era of transparency and probity. Never again must the nation find itself on the FATF grey list – twice is already two times too many. In return those with capital to invest need to fully respect the traditions and democracy of the land of the blue sky. The second verse of the Mongolian National Anthem perhaps provides a good text for all to work to:

‘With all honest nations of the world

Strengthen our bonds

With all our will and strength

Let’s develop our beloved Mongolia’

John Grogan

Chairman

Mongolian British Chamber of Commerce

October 7, 2020

The Mongolian government on Wednesday decided to upgrade toilets in schools and kindergartens across the country by 2022.

All pit latrines or traditional wooden toilets in schools and kindergartens will be phased out within 2022, the government's press office said in a statement.

Pit latrines, usually two to five meters in Mongolia, are a type of toilet that collects human feces in a hole in the ground, and are used by the majority of Mongolia's population but reportedly have a negative impact on public health.

Most of the country's rural schools and kindergartens use such toilets.

There are several toilet-related injuries and deaths in the Asian country every year. Enditem

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. Commending Mongolia for fulfilling all its commitments to the EU and ratifying the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters, the Economic and Financial Affairs Council of the EU made a decision, during its meeting held on October 6, to officially remove Mongolia from the EU grey list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes.

In 2017, the EU adopted its black list of jurisdictions that do not share information on tax issues, do not ensure transparency, and lack a legal framework against tax evasion and Mongolia was added to the list on December 5, 2017. However, as a result of the joint efforts made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Finance of Mongolia, the country was removed from the “black list” in January 2018 and moved to the “grey list”.

In aims to be removed from this list, the Government of Mongolia adopted Resolution No.350 in 2017 to ensure tax transparency, information exchange, and the implementation of international rules to combat tax evasion, as well as joining “Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes” of OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) as a member country. In line with the organization's recommendations, the legal framework for information exchange, transparency, cooperation, and tax evasion has been incorporated into domestic legislation as part of the tax reform package.

In addition, within the framework of its obligations to the European Union, the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters was ratified by the Parliament of Mongolia on January 3 and entered into force on June 1 which played an important role in Mongolia’s removal from the grey list.

It should be noted that this is not a list of countries with strategic deficiencies or so-called ‘Grey List’ of Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

A 36-year-old truck driver who recently arrived from Russia has been confirmed having the coronavirus infection; bringing the total number of COVID-19 cases in Mongolia to 316. The man entered through Altanbulag border crossings on 4 October; he is one of several truck drivers who have been infected in Russia.

Separately, a 57-year-old woman was discharged today (7 October) from the National Centre for Communicative Diseases after having fully recovered from coronavirus. The woman returned to Mongolia with the charter flight from Seattle in the USA on 2 September.

So far, 308 people or 98 percent of all patients who tested positive for coronavirus have recovered.

A new species of toothless dinosaur that had just two fingers on each arm has been discovered in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia.

Researchers from the University of Edinburgh found multiple skeletons of the species, named Oksoko avarsan.

The feathered creature, which dates from about one hundred million years ago, also had a large, toothless beak.

The team said the discovery could help explain how animals lose fingers and toes through evolution.

They said the species had one fewer finger on each forearm compared with its close relatives, suggesting an adaptability that enabled the animals to spread during the Late Cretaceous Period.

The animals, which grew to two metres long, had a large, toothless beak similar to the type seen in parrots.

It is the first evidence of digit loss in the three-fingered family of dinosaurs, known as oviraptors.

The team said the discovery that the dinosaurs could evolve forelimb adaptations suggested they could alter their diets and lifestyles, and potentially diversify and multiply.

The team also discovered that Oksoko avarsan, like many other prehistoric species, were social as juveniles.

The fossil remains of four young dinosaurs were preserved resting together.

Dr Gregory Funston, of the University of Edinburgh's school of geosciences, said the discovery shed light on how a group of parrot-like animals thrived more than 68 million years ago.

"Oksoko avarsan is interesting because the skeletons are very complete and the way they were preserved resting together shows that juveniles roamed together in groups.

"But more importantly, its two-fingered hand prompted us to look at the way the hand and forelimb changed throughout the evolution of oviraptors, which hadn't been studied before.

"This revealed some unexpected trends that are a key piece in the puzzle of why oviraptors were so diverse before the extinction that killed the dinosaurs."

The study, published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, was funded by The Royal Society and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada.

It also involved researchers from the University of Alberta and Philip J Currie Dinosaur Museum in Canada, Hokkaido University in Japan, and the Mongolian Academy of Sciences.

The U.S. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo expressed his regrets for postponing his visit to Mongolia, in a phone call today with President of Mongolia Khaltmaagiin Battulga.

In return, the head of state of Mongolia said he is hoping that Mr. Pompeo’s visit will be rescheduled soon.

“It is our interest to keep our ‘third neighbor’ and strategic partner United States as a significant commercial and investment partner”, President Battulga continued, and shared his views on the opportunities to broaden relations with economic cooperation as priority.

In specific, President Battulga further underlined the importance of the “Mongolia Third Neighbor Trade Act” legislative bill, which is currently being discussed in the Congress. If passed, the bill will leverage the bilateral trade turnover, enhance the growth of textile industries and promote women’s employment. In this regard, the sides expressed mutual commitment to the extensive cooperation in the scope of the Mongolia-U.S. Strategic Partnership.

Concluding the conversation, President of Mongolia Khaltmaagiin Battulga conveyed the Mongolian people’s warm wishes to President Donald Trump and the First Lady for full and speedy recovery.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s diagnosis with COVID-19, and subsequent hospitalization from Friday through Monday, has thrown the country’s political sphere into chaos, just one month out from a contentious presidential election. Inevitably, the situation at home is having ripple effects on U.S. diplomacy in the Indo-Pacific.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was in Japan from October 4 to 6 for a meeting of foreign ministers of the “Quad,” as the grouping of four Indo-Pacific democracies (Australia, India, Japan, and the United States) is known. But after his stay in Japan, Pompeo is heading right back to the United States – cutting off planned trips to both Mongolia and South Korea.

The decision, apparently made with Trump’s COVID-19 diagnosis in mind, came at the last minute. The State Department announced Pompeo would only be visiting Japan on October 3, the day before he left. As late as October 2, the department was insisting the trip would take place as planned. Officials held a briefing that day outlining the planned agenda for “Secretary Pompeo’s upcoming visit to Japan, Mongolia, and the Republic of Korea.” (Trump’s COVID-19 diagnosis was announced early in the morning on October 2.)

In a brief statement announcing the change, the State Department said that “Secretary Pompeo expects to be traveling to Asia again in October and will work to reschedule visits on that trip, that is now just a few weeks off.” But some of the benefits of stopping in Ulaanbaatar and Seoul this week were time sensitive – and will be lost even with a delay of just a few weeks.

In the case of Mongolia, there’s already a sense that Washington doesn’t put much emphasis on the relationship. The cancelled trip – even if later rescheduled – fuels that perception. As David Stilwell, assistant secretary for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, pointed out in the pre-trip briefing, it would have been Pompeo’s first stop in Mongolia since he took over the State Department. The last visit to Mongolia by a U.S. secretary of state was John Kerry’s trip in 2016, under the Obama administration. Stilwell’s comment that Pompeo’s planned visit “is an example of the importance the United States attaches to the U.S.-Mongolian relationship” rings ironically now that the trip has been scrapped.

Mongolia already had frustrations about the lack of attention given to the relationship thanks to the slow progress of the United States’ Mongolia Third Neighbor Trade Act. The bill, which would grant duty-free access to some Mongolian imports, notably cashmere and textile products, has stalled out in Congress since being first introduced in 2018. The bill made no progress in 2018 and was reintroduced in 2019. It didn’t even make it past committee consideration, much less a full vote, in either year. With an election looming, the bill is all but certain to die quietly, and will need to be taken up again under a new Congress in 2020. Mongolia will be keen to see that happen, but has just lost a high-profile chance to make its priorities clear to the top U.S. diplomat.

Finally, by delaying the trip Pompeo misses the chance to capitalize on anti-China sentiment currently running high in Mongolia. There is deep anger over the sidelining of Mongolian-language education in China’s Inner Mongolia region. Mongolian protesters greeted Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi when he arrived in Ulaanbaatar in September, and have been pressuring their government to speak out on the issue. The United States had a chance to win public favor by commenting on the perceived oppression of ethnic Mongolians in China – and, as Stilwell did in his briefing, by talking up U.S. efforts to “to help preserve Mongolia’s cultural heritage.” A delay of even a few weeks could see that opportunity evaporate.

Meanwhile, in South Korea, the opportunity costs are even greater. With North Korea set to celebrate the 75th anniversary of its ruling party on October 10, analysts expect Pyongyang to show off new military technology. Pompeo’s presence in Seoul just a few days before would have sent a strong signal of alliance solidarity. As Stilwell put it, the trip would “reaffirm the ironclad U.S.-ROK alliance, which is a linchpin of peace and security in the region.” Now that reassurance – and, more concretely, the chance to discuss a united response – won’t come until after North Korea’s anniversary celebrations, with whatever provocations that may bring.

Such signaling is doubly important at a time when the U.S.-South Korea alliance is fraying over fractious cost-sharing talks. The Special Measures Agreement that outlines Seoul’s contribution to the cost of hosting U.S. forces in South Korea expired in 2019; the two sides have been unable to close the gap between U.S. demands for a five-fold increase and South Korea’s insistence that its current levels of contribution are fair. Under those circumstances, routine signaling of the health of the relationship – including official visits like Pompeo’s – assumes a heightened importance.

Further complicating things is the fact that Pompeo kept his scheduled trip to Tokyo. South Korea is always sensitive to the optics of U.S. officials visiting Japan without stopping in Seoul, even more so at the current moment, when the Japan-South Korea relationship remains on the rocks. Pompeo’s trip to Japan, of course, involved a meeting with three other foreign ministers – something much harder to reschedule. But there were also bilateral discussions with Japan. Seoul will be keenly aware that Pompeo “stressed that the [U.S.-Japan] Alliance is essential to the future of a free and open Indo-Pacific region” in talks with Japan’s foreign minister, without subsequently holding discussions with his South Korean counterpart as well.

That hints at one final issue with the shortened trip: The only leg Pompeo kept involved a meeting of the Quad, widely seen as an anti-China bloc despite constant protestations to the contrary from its members. Keeping Pompeo’s commitment to the Quad, and the Quad alone, thus reinforces perceptions that U.S. Asia diplomacy places top priority on countering China. That message is especially problematic for South Korea and Mongolia, which both have a deep economic reliance on China. Seoul and Ulaanbaatar would be unwilling to unequivocally “choose sides” in the U.S.-China Cold War. The more U.S. diplomacy looks to be focused on drawing those lines, the less comfortable countries like South Korea and Mongolia will be.