Trade, defence, critical minerals feature as key areas of discussion during Jaishankar's Mongolia visit
New Delhi, June 23
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar paid an official visit to Mongolia from June 22-23 at the invitation of his Mongolian counterpart, B Battsetseg and took a stock of the wide-ranging collaboration between the two spiritual neighbours.
In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs noted how the discussions covered cooperation in development partnership, trade, education, culture, capacity building, supply chains, mining and critical minerals, defence, air connectivity, and people-to-people ties.
During the talks, both sides also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.
Jaishankar held talks with Foreign Minister Battsetseg and Minister and Chief of Cabinet Secretariat B Enkhbayar. He called on Khurelsukh Ukhnaa, President of Mongolia, S Byambatsogt, Speaker of the State Great Khural (Parliament) of Mongolia. He also met L Enkh-Amgalan, Minister of Education.
During the visit, EAM reviewed the progress in bilateral relations since the State Visit of Khurelsukh Ukhnaa, President of Mongolia, to India in October 2025, and discussed potential areas for future collaboration to further expand the India-Mongolia Strategic Partnership.
Notably, Jaishankar also visited the construction site of the India-assisted Oil Refinery Project in Altanshiree, Dornogovi province, accompanied by Mongolian Foreign Minister B Battsetseg and Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Damdinnyam Gongor and was briefed on its progress. He also visited the Gandantegchinlen Monastery in Ulaanbaatar.
Earlier on Tuesday, in a post on X, he shared snippets from his meeting with Minister and Chief Cabinet Secretary Battumur Enkhbayar and mentioned that discussions took place on the bilateral cooperation, including new avenues in mining, energy, technology and Human resources.
He also reiterated India's support for the iconic Gandan Monastery in Ulaanbaatar, underlining how it is a symbol of the special and spiritual bond between India and Mongolia.
Significantly, the EAM also witnessed the India-Mongolia partnership project for the digitisation of one million Buddhist manuscripts in action.
Jaishankar's visit to Mongolia is part of a broader four-day tour that also includes South Korea.
— ANI
Reader Comments
The digitisation of Buddhist manuscripts is a beautiful initiative! Shows our cultural diplomacy is as strong as economic ties. But I wish the media covered these achievements more instead of just focusing on domestic politics.
Critical minerals is the key takeaway here. With China dominating rare earth processing, India needs reliable partners like Mongolia. This visit couldn't be more timely. 👌
Interesting to see India's outreach in Northeast Asia. The Mongolia-India partnership seems to be growing steadily. The oil refinery project is a big deal for Mongolia's self-reliance. Good diplomacy by Jaishankar.
While the visit covered many areas, I hope the air connectivity discussions lead to direct flights soon. Currently, travelling between India and Mongolia is unnecessarily complicated. Business and tourism would both benefit immensely! ✈️
Good to see India engaging with Mongolia across multiple sectors—defence, trade, education, and culture. But I wonder if the critical minerals partnership will actually materialize into concrete projects. Need to watch the implementation.
Love the spiritual connection angle! Both countries share Buddhism and now we're digitising manuscripts together. This is the kind of soft power India should leverage more. Gandan Monastery
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