Usually shrouded in mystery and obscurity, Mongolia is seen as inconspicuous in world affairs. That all changed recently when in the space of one month the landlocked country hosted Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and played joint military war games with the United States.
　　August was a busy time for the Mongolian Government. First, the Japanese leader received a rousing welcome at Sukhbaatar Square in the capital city of Ulaanbaatar on August 10. This had Mongolian analysts commenting that as this was the first time for any foreign head of state to be welcomed at the square, it symbolized a great honor for Japan.
　　Militarily, a joint drill exercise code named “Khan Quest 2006” and mainly involving the United States and Mongolian troops, was staged in the suburbs of Ulaanbaatar August 11-24. Some 1,000 troops took part. Other troops involved came from Bangladesh, India, Thailand, Tonga and Fiji.
　　When August was over, these two unrelated but highly news worthy events had thrust Mongolia very firmly into the international spotlight. But it was the Japanese visit that was the most significant.
　　
　　Upping the stakes
　　
　　Japan-Mongolia relations have been on the burner recently with frequent high-level exchanges. Japanese politicians are particularly enthusiastic about visiting Mongolia. In August Koizumi had originally planned to visit Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, in addition to Mongolia, but decided eventually to devote the trip solely to Mongolia. The decision is a clear indicator of the great importance the Japanese Government attaches to Mongolia. Senior Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Katsutoshi Kaneda also visited Mongolia early in July. About 80 Japanese parliamentarians visited in July and August.
　　There are several strategic considerations behind Japan’s growing interest in Mongolia. Mongolia is poised in a strategically significant location in the heart of Asia between Russia and China, serving as an important passage between Central Asia and Northeast Asia. Situated in a corner of East Asia, Japan has been seeking a base for its expansion on the Asian continent in a bid to expand its influence in Asia and secure raw material supplies as well as markets for its products. Mongolia is the best choice for Tokyo. As early as the 1920s, the infamous “Tanaka Memorial,” an imperialist conquest plan allegedly presented by warlord Tanaka Giichi to the Japanese emperor, advocated the conquest of Manchuria, Mongolia, China and eventually the whole of Asia, a testimony to Japan’s emphasis on Mongolia’s strategic importance.
　　At present, Japan is discontented with its status in East Asia. With the China-Japan relations chilling, Japan is faced with mounting difficulties in exerting influence on the Asian continent. As a result, it has to expand in the south and north by developing ties with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Mongolia respectively. In this context, Japan’s courting of Mongolia is self-evidently significant. Moreover, Japan has been encouraging Mongolia to join the U.S.-led Northeast Asian security system, believing that if it joins the Japanese-U.S. alliance, it may prove a deterrent against China and Russia. 　　In addition, Japan has long been coveting Mongolia’s rich natural resources. Mongolia boasts huge verified natural resource reserves-6 billion barrels of oil, 152 billion tons of coal, 1.4 million tons of uranium, 13 million tons of gold and 2 billion tons of copper, apart from large amounts of natural gas, molybdenum, phosphor, tungsten and fluorspar.
　　
　　Long-term engagement
　　
　　Russia’s influence in Mongolia has been on the decline since the collapse of the Soviet Union. While pulling its troops out, Russia cut its large-scale assistance to Mongolia, plunging the country into a severe economic crisis. Japan plugged the hole with a massive assistance program, attempting to fill the power void and turn Mongolia into a stepping-stone for infiltration into Central Asia and Russia’s far east. Japanese businesses and non-governmental organizations have since been pouring into Mongolia.
　　Since the two countries normalized their diplomatic ties in the 1990s, relations between the two countries have made rapid headway. The goal of building a comprehensive partnership between them has been confirmed. Japan stresses long-term engagement in its policy toward Mongolia. It supports Mongolia’s democratic reforms politically, assists the country economically and makes an increasingly large investment in its cultural and educational sectors. This instills a sense of gratitude into Mongolians. Since 1991, Japan has been Mongolia’s largest foreign donor for 15 consecutive years, with its contributions accounting for one third of the total foreign assistance the country has received.
　　In 2002, the Japanese Government launched a “grassroots plan” in Mongolia to boost bilateral cultural exchanges. In June that year, Japan helped establish a Mongolian-Japanese Culture Center in the National University of Mongolia, where Japanese movies are screened and Japanese lessons are available free of charge. In 2003, the Japanese Government shifted the focus of its educational assistance to Mongolia from large cities to grassroots communities, especially poor provinces and counties.
　　Japan assists Mongolia in a variety of ways, such as providing financial assistance to the disabled, donating computers and colored TV sets to schools, offering power generators and transformers to grassroots Mongolian communities and upgrading water pipes and sewage treatment systems.
　　Japan’s assistance has helped tighten the economic bond between Japan and Mongolia and brought tangible benefits to the Mongolians. As a result, the Mongolians have shown greater friendliness toward Japan. An opinion poll of 2,000 people, conducted by the Japanese Embassy in Mongolia in 2004, showed that over 70 percent of respondents said they felt a sense of affinity toward Japan as a country. Many Japanese and Mongolians believe that they share the same origin with common ancestors.
　　
　　Third-neighbor strategy
　　
　　Given national security considerations, Mongolia drastically adjusted its foreign policy after the end of the Cold War. It adopted a pragmatic, flexible foreign policy that underscored the need to balance the big powers. In other words, while trying to develop friendly ties with its two large neighbors, China and Russia, it stands ready to forge close relations with “third neighbors,” mainly the United States and Japan. Under this strategy, it seeks to safeguard its national security and at the same time obtain funds and technologies indispensable for its development. 　　
　　After 1990, the Mongolian Government began to acquire foreign loans and assistance. Japan has been actively taking initiatives to aid the country. Since 1991, some 10 international conferences with the theme of providing aid to Mongolia have been held, granting the country several billion dollars in loans, over half of which were extended by Japan.
　　In 2005 when Japan attempted to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council, Mongolia was the only country in East Asia to offer support.
　　Mongolia underwent a major political change in 2006. The Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party (MPRP), a party that has nearly 80 years’ experience of governing Mongolia, took over the reins after the coalition government it formed with a democratic radical party in 2004 was dissolved with the resignation of 10 MPRP cabinet ministers early this year. Mongolia’s new prime minister, MPRP leader Miyeegombo Enkhbold, visited Japan and held bilateral talks with his Japanese counterpart Koizumi in late March.
　　During Enkhbold’s Japan trip, he and Koizumi designated 2006 as the Year of Mongolia in Japan this year and next year the Year of Japan in Mongolia.
　　The MPRP government’s recent diplomatic moves, such as the high-level reception given to visiting U.S. President George W. Bush, the hosting of the joint military exercises involving the United States and other countries and new prime minister’s Japan tour have shown to the United States and Japan that Ulaanbaatar sets great store by its relations with the two Western powers and that the new government will stick to the country’s established foreign policies.
　　Being mutually complementary, the Japan-Mongolia relationship is set to make great strides, a trend that is poised to exert influence on the strategic pattern in Northeast Asia and East Asia as a whole.

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