55 Mongolians Finally Return Home after Mongolia Provides Flight

A group of 55 Mongolians who had been staying in South Korea after their home country refused their repatriation have finally returned. 

According to legal circles on Thursday, the group went back aboard an extra flight on Wednesday. Some of the group conducted a hunger strike directed at the Mongolian Embassy in South Korea, while being kept in a detention center.

The Mongolians were initially scheduled to be repatriated on April 2 but the plan was scrapped after Mongolia unilaterally cancelled their reserved flights due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Mongolia had refused entry of its nationals residing abroad since the end of February as part of efforts to block imported coronavirus cases. 

Mongolia later reversed its decision and provided a flight to bring home the 55 Mongolians once they all obtained documents confirming they tested negative for COVID-19. The group paid for the tests themselves.

Mongolia is not the only country refusing to repatriate its own citizens. Vietnam has also refused to let in its citizens since March 6, and Thailand has demonstrated reluctance in repatriating its nationals.

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Asiana wins rights to fly to Mongolia; Jeju, Eastar win routes to Singapore

SEOUL, Feb. 25 (Yonhap) -- Asiana Airline Inc. secured the right to fly additional routes on the highly sought after South Korea-Mongolia route, while Jeju Air Co. and Eastar Jet Co. were allocated flights to Singapore, the government said Monday.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said the decision was made by its airline traffic review committee, which distributed slots secured by Seoul in the past year to local carriers.

The Mongolian route was contested by all carriers, with Asiana, the country's No. 2 full-service carrier, saying the allocation will enhance customer choice and better meet the national interest.

"Asiana will make all necessary preparations to get ready to offer flight services," an executive said for the company said.

The route was previously dominated by Korean Air Lines Co., the country's largest flag carrier.

The additional passenger services from Incheon International Airport to Ulan Bator comprise three weekly flights, with one flight from the port city of Busan to the Mongolian capital going to Air Busan Co.

The ministry said the coveted route linking Busan with Singapore has been assigned to Jeju and Eastar, each securing the right to operate seven weekly flights.

On the route to Manila, Korean Air, which already operated services on it, has been given extra seats.

The ministry said Korean Air and Asiana were given additional flight slots for the route to Uzbekistan.

"If companies are able to make the necessary arrangements, they should be able to commence flight services around March 31, ahead of the peak summer travel season," the ministry said.

It added that efforts are being made to secure more slots to countries like China going forward.

Source:Yonhap news agency

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Airlines Vie for Lucrative Flights to Mongolia

Korean airlines are competing fiercely for lucrative flight routes to Mongolia after the two sides agreed to allow multiple carriers to fly between Incheon and Ulaanbaatar last month.

Until now flag carrier Korean Air has monopolized the route over the last three decades.

Flag carriers are trying to consolidate their presence in the mid and long-haul market while low-cost carriers are striving to expand to it. They are angling for three flights a week or 840 seats that will become available in addition to the current six flights a week.

Second-ranked Asiana Airlines believes its 290-seater Airbus A330 is more than capable of covering the new route. "Planes owned by low-cost carriers typically have only 189 seats, so they would forfeit around 270 seats to cover the newly opened flights."

Korean Air has also applied for the new slots, but its chances of getting its monopoly enforced are low. Jeju Air, T'way Air and Eastar Jet plan to plead their cases by pointing to their low fares. They insist that monopolistic control of key routes by the two major carriers must end.

One staffer at a budget carrier said, "Korean Air flights to Mongolia cost around W1 million, but we offer flights to Hong Kong, which is about the same distance, for just W300,000. We need to boost competition to change the price structure" (US$1=W1,128).

The Ministry of Land, Transport and Infrastructure will convene a selection committee meeting on Feb. 25 or 26 to decide the winners of the route. "We will evaluate various factors and award licenses to the highest scorer," a ministry spokesman said.

The ministry plans to keep the identities of the 10 members of the committee a secret to protect them from outside pressure.

Source:http://english.chosun.com

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Korean Air set to lose monopoly over Mongolia route

By Nam Hyun-woo

Korean Air Chairman Cho Yang-ho

Korean Air will lose its monopoly over an air route linking Incheon and Mongolia's capital of Ulaanbaatar as the government plans to allow Asiana Airlines or one of low-cost carriers (LCCs) to operate on the lucrative route, according to industry officials Tuesday.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport is expected to grant a new license on the Incheon-Mongolia air route this month, and Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air, T'way Air and Eastar Jet are vying to win it.
The route has been monopolized by Korean Air for nearly 30 years due to the two countries' 1991 aeronautical agreement allowing only one carrier from each country to provide air travel service. From Mongolia, MIAT Mongolian Airlines is operating flights to Incheon.
Due to their monopolization, criticisms have been raised that ticket prices were too expensive compared to other routes with similar flight hours, and the number of available seats was insufficient. 
As the two countries renewed their agreement last month, this inconvenience will likely be addressed, according to the ministry. For Korea, two carriers can operate up to nine flights or 2,500 seats a week, up approximately 50 percent from the current six flights a week with 1,656 seats. 
"This will not strip Korean Air of its status as the route's operator," a ministry official said. "It will open an additional slot to other carriers, meaning Korean Air will maintain its flights."
However, industry officials said the additional slot will affect Korean Air's ticket prices, given it will no longer be the sole operator. 
"Because of Korean Air's monopoly and limited seats, the ticket prices oftentimes soared over 1 million won ($890) in holiday seasons, double the price of tickets to other cities taking about four hours," an official at an LCC said. "When additional slots are open, the ticket price will go down and more travelers will be catered for."
To earn scores in the ministry's review for a new carrier, Jeju Air and Eastar Jet have been operating chartered planes between the two cities, following the footsteps of Air Busan, which is running a route linking Busan and Ulaanbaatar after its track record of operating chartered planes was recognized in a ministry review.
"We have operated two chartered flights linking Incheon and Ulaanbaatar last year, and 14 chartered flights linking Cheongju and the Mongolian capital," an Eastar Jet official said. "We believe demand was high then because of the high price of existing flights to the city."
Asiana Airlines is also pitching that a full service carrier is suitable for the slot, because large aircraft are needed to cover increased numbers in just three flights.
Carriers are vying for the license because the route is lucrative. According to the ministry, 330,000 traveled between Incheon and Ulaanbaatar last year and the number has been increasing an average 11 percent every year, as Mongolia is emerging as a new tourist attraction.
"Also, given the Mongolian aviation market's size, it seems very difficult to explore another route linking the country," another official at a domestic carrier said. "For carriers, it will be a rare chance to expand their business." 

Source:www.koreatimes.co.k

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K-Bank, KT team up to export internet banking to Mongolia

By Baek Byung-yeul
K-Bank, the nation's first internet-only lender, has teamed up with KT to export its banking services to Mongolia, the company said, Sunday.

The move is part of K-Bank's efforts to expand its business overseas. KT is the largest shareholder of K-Bank with an 18.01 percent stake.
The bank said that in cooperation with Korea's top fixed-line telecom operator, it has signed a contract with MCS Group, a Mongolian conglomerate, to transfer its internet banking technologies and services.
The five-year contract is estimated to be worth up to 5.5 billion won ($4.92 million), including 2.3 billion won in consultancy fees.
Established in 1993 as an energy sector consultant, MCS Group is one of Mongolia's largest conglomerates.
It has a wide business portfolio that includes telecommunications, engineering and infrastructure, real estate, mining and consumer goods distribution.
The Mongolian enterprise has been preparing to set up its first internet lender since early last year. K-Bank and KT will join hands to help MCS Group start the business tentatively titled "M Bank."
Under the contract, the Korean duo will take part in a wide range of projects to launch M Bank, including developing a business model, operation know-how of credit risk management systems and constructing an information technology system.
KT especially will help the Mongolian lender build its own credit scoring system (CSS).
"I am pleased that we can take the first step of expanding our business to the global market, which has been one of our main goals when initiating the internet-only lending business," K-Bank CEO Shim Seong-hoon said in a statement.
"As a major shareholder of K-Bank, KT has developed its own CSS and has accumulated knowhow on the system over years," Yun Kyung-lim, head of KT's global business office, said.
"Based on the company's enhanced technology and platform in the fintech sector, the company will expand its business overseas. We will also strengthen our partnership with MCS Group."

Source:http://www.koreatimes.co.kr

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Lotte GRS launches burger shop chain in Mongolia

Lotte GRS Co., the restaurant franchise unit of South Korea’s fifth largest conglomerate Lotte Group, is launching fast-food restaurant brand Lotteria in Mongolia with an aim to raise the store number to 10 in the next four years. 

According to Lotte GRS on Monday, Lotteria’s first restaurant in Mongolia opens in Ulaanbaatar, the country’s capital city. Its opening follows after Lotte GRS in September signed on a master franchise deal with Mongolia’s restaurant and theater operator Eugenetek Mongolia LLC. 

The master franchise deal is a common international franchise development contract in which a franchiser allows a master franchisee to operate its brand stores with local franchisees and shares its operation knowhow for fees. 

Eugenetek Mongolia aims to open a total of 10 Lotteria outlet stores by 2022, Lotte GRS added. 

Lotte GRS expects the new restaurant would generate stable profits as it is located in a commercial district with popular shopping centers. Mongolia is also a young country with people under age 35 making up 65 percent of total population, raising hopes for a fast growth of the fast-food restaurant chain business. The popularity of Korean culture including K-pop and drama has also been growing in the country with consumers gaining favorable impression on Korean brands. 

“We’ll keep up efforts to expand the restaurant business in Mongolia based on our international franchise development knowhow,” said a company official. 

Lotte GRS has so far made forays into eight countries including Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia and Mongolia. It now owns two franchise brands of fast-food chain Lotteria and coffee shop chain Angel-in-us.

By Lee Duk-joo and Lee Ha-yeon

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Mongolia hosts unified Korean Judo Team to Make History at East Asian Championship

Judo is set to unite the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) under one flag – for the first time in a summer sport - as a unified team will make history by competing at the East Asian Championships in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia this weekend.

IJF President Marius Vizer held a joint meeting with Mr Pak Hak Yong, DPRK Judo General Secretary and Mr Cho Yong Chul, Korean Judo Association Vice President - on the occasion of the Hohhot Grand Prix in May - to discuss a unified team being formed for the World Judo Championships 2018 in Baku, Azerbaijan, this September.

These talks paved the way for the two neighbours to agree to link up this weekend and negotiations for both sides to join up in Baku are still on track.

The East Asian Championships organising committee met in the State House on Wednesday to finalise their plans for the event and revealed that over 200 judoka will compete and announced that ROK and the DPRK will unite under the same flag for the men’s and women’s team events on Sunday (five judoka per team).

The Unified Korean team will compete alongside China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Japan and Mongolia and will use Arirang, a Korean folk song, as their anthem. Korea’s unified flag will adorn the judogi of their athletes.

Mr. Battulga Khaltmaa, President of the Republic of Mongolia and of the Mongolian Judo Association, will open the competition on Saturday.

IJF Media & Communications Department
Pedro Lasuen, IJF Media Coordinator
Nicolas Messner, IJF Media Director
Mark Pickering, IJF Media Director
Gibran Khan, IJF Broadcasting & Media Rights 

press@ijf.org

IJF - 1007 Lausanne, Switzerland
Avenue Frédéric-César-de La Harpe 49

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Korean Air monopolizing Mongolia-Incheon route… ‘Expensive tickets’ for 19 years

[ Kim Yang Hyuk mj@ ] | 2018-05-16 11:01:29

Korean Air is being criticized for taking the expensive airline charge for the 19th year on the Ulaanbaatar route from Incheon to Mongolia, which has secured the exclusive rights to travel from the government in the past. According to Incheon International Airport`s exclusive route, Korean Air is receiving Ulaanbaatar air fare for 3 times more than the similar distance and flight time between Incheon and Hong Kong. Earlier, Hanjin Group`s total number of family members and the suspicion of tax evasion now followed by the controversy over the airline bill.

The price of the round-trip ticket from Incheon to Ulaanbaatar as of May 15, starts at KRW 955,500 on the summer high season (June 27 ~ July 1) of Korean online booking site. The price of a round-trip ticket to Hong Kong from Incheon is about KRW 323,700, about three times cheaper than that of Mongolia.

All of these tickets include a fuel surcharge of KRW 30,800. From Incheon to Ulaanbaatar and Hong Kong, the same fuel surcharge means that the flights are similar. Actual flight time is not different between Ulaanbaatar (3 hours 10 minutes ~ 40 minutes) and Hong Kong (3 hours 40 minutes ~ 50 minutes).

The Korean government and the industry cited "exclusive" flights as a background in which the price of a ticket is about three times the difference on similar streets. An official from the Ministry of Land, Transport and Tourism said, "Unlike Hong Kong routes, Mongolia does not have to compete for price because it is an exclusive flight for Korean Air." "The airline should not exceed the upper limit of the fare fare that is reported to the authorities." The average fare for Korean Air`s Ulaanbaatar route report to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs is KRW 1,700,000 based on the standard fare, which is twice as high as Hong Kong`s KRW 544,600.

Korean Air has been operating in this form for the past 19 years since its disembarkation by the government from the Ministry of Construction and Transportation (now the Ministry of Land Transportation) and the Mongolian government in 1999. An official of the industry said, "Even though there was Asiana Airlines at the time, Korean Air was able to say that it had eaten the route with the image of nationality." Hanjin Group Chairman Hanjin donated B727 aircraft to Mongolia, Mongolia has always been a part of the Mongolian government. It is in this connection that Joe was awarded the Polar Medal, the highest Mongol Medal. The official said, "Because of past ties, Chairman Cho Yang-ho will receive `state hospitality` when he visits Mongolia."

Korean Air, in 2012, became a controversy because it was discovered that a high-ranking civil servant belonging to the Mongolian Aeronautical Authority was paying for the travel expenses of Jeju Island. In the meantime, the South Korean government and the Mongolian government continued their negotiations on the increased number of flights with the Mongolian government rejection. In addition, the Fair Trade Commission issued a correction order saying that Korean Air and Mongolian national airline American Art Airlines had unfairly monopolized the route in the same year, but the situation did not change.

The company representative said, "The Mongolian route is focused on demand during the peak season (June to August), making it difficult to secure stable earnings throughout the year, and the airfare is expensive due to poor weather conditions, "He said." It`s not as high as the comparable freight rates of similar routes on a single carrier. "


By Kim Yang Hyuk mj@

[ copyright ⓒ The Digitaltimes ]

Source:http://eng.dt.co.kr/mcontents.html?article_no=20180516110129001674 

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KT Sat inks transponder lease deal with Mongolia's DDish TV

Satellite network services provider KT Sat has signed a transponder lease agreement with Mongolian satellite TV operator DDish TV, The Korea Times reports. Under the terms of the contract, KT's satellite-based network service affiliate will lease four transponders to offer DTH services for DDish TV starting next year.

KT Sat said the contract with DDish TV will not expire until the end of the satellites' 17-year lifespan. DDish TV will start using KT Sat's KoreaSat-5A satellites from 2017. The operator is expected to offer more than 90 HD channels. DDish TV has around 320,000 subscribers across Mongolia.

KT Sat plans to launch the KoreaSat-5G and KoreaSat-7 satellites at end-2016, and expand its coverage to the Philippines, Indonesia and Pakistan.

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S. Korea, Mongolia hold working-level defense talks

SEOUL, Aug. 10 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and Mongolia held working-level defense talks in Ulaanbaatar Monday to discuss regional security issues, including North Korea's nuclear weapons program, the Defense Ministry said.

The ministry said that Yoon Soon-ku, the ministry's director general on international policy, met with his Mongolian counterpart, Zagdsuren Boldbaatar, in Mongolia's capital to discuss a follow-up to a meeting between their defense chiefs held in May last year and how to enhance defense cooperation.

Yoon also plans to fly to Uzbekistan to hold similar working-level talks with his counterpart Wednesday, it added.

"This series of defense talks will serve as an occasion to deepen cooperation with Mongolia and Uzbekistan," a ministry official said.

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Man with no license booked for driving Mongolian diplomatic car

By Kim Se-jeong Police have booked a man without physical detention for driving a vehicle belonging to the Mongolian Embassy in Seoul without a driver's license. Jungbu Police Station officials said Monday, the man, a Mongolian, 45, whose name was withheld, was driving a diplomatic car in central Seoul at around 9:30 a.m. on Friday. A policeman in a patrol vehicle saw the man throw a cigarette butt from the window, and stopped the driver to fine him for a misdemeanor. Asked to show his ID card, the man presented an ordinary passport, not a diplomat's passport. Asked to show his driver's license, he said he did not have one. Police found that the man had a record of drunk driving in Korea in 2004 and that his driver's license had been cancelled. The man told police he was an executive with MIAT Mongolian Airlines, Mongolia's national carrier. "He was a legal resident here, and he said that he was driving the diplomatic vehicle because he was given ‘a mission' by the embassy,'" a police officer said. Officials at the Mongolian Embassy were not available for comment. skim@koreatimes.co.kr,

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Korean beer producer OB struggles to hold on to Mongolia sales

	Oriental Brewery Company’s CEO Frederico Freire Jardim plants a commemorative tree Tuesday in front of a monument to celebrate winning UNCCD’s Land for Life Award in Erdene Sum, east of Ulan Bator. The forestry project is one of OBC’s corporate responsibility programs in Mongolia, which is intended to prevent desertification and give jobs to local nomads. Provided by the company

ULAN BATOR, Mongolia - For Korean beer manufacturer Oriental Brewery Company, the land of Genghis Khan is not just the largest importer of its flagship product, sudsy Cass beer, but kind of a brother country where it is willing to share some of its profit for the sake of its environment. 

On Tuesday, in the middle of a wilderness called Erdene Sum, a desert scrubland about 70 kilometers (43 miles) east of Ulan Bator, dozens of people gathered at a small forest of poplar trees dubbed the Cass Forest of Hope. They were there to celebrate the receiving of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification’s Land for Life Award 2014, which was awarded last March.

“Since 1999, Mongolia has been our market, so naturally, we at OBC kept our eye on the Mogolian desertification issue, which affects Korea and all of Asia,” said Frederico Freire Jardim, CEO of OBC, in remarks at the ceremony. “The Cass Forest of Hope project will be continued until the forest of Erdene Sum turns green and I would like to request our dear participants to keep supporting our project.”

At the ceremony, Freire and other participants unveiled a commemorative monument and planted a tree.

	A local customer buys Cass at a mall in Ulan Bator on Tuesday. Despite a price 20 to 30 percent higher price than for local beers, the wholesaler says Cass is the most popular product in the premium beer market. Provided by the company

The Cass Forest of Hope project kicked off in 2010 with the goal of planting 150,000 trees by 2020. The idea is to turn a wilderness into a windbreak to prevent Mongolia’s stiff winds from eroding the soil. The project is also contributing to the local community by giving jobs taking care of the forest to local nomads. OBC is spending 1 percent of all its sales in Mongolia on the forestry project.

The ceremony was proof that Mongolians appreciate OBC’s efforts. Among the attendees on Tuesday were Ulan Bator Vice Mayor Bat Erdene, who was there to offer a plaque of appreciation to OBC, and Dorjgurkhem Batbold, a director from the Ministry of Environment and Green Development.

“Desertification is a problem not only for Mongolia but for all of Asia,” said Erdene at the ceremony. “This is a model case in that [OBC], beloved by Mongolian customers, is sincerely engaging in solving environmental problems of Mongolia.”

OBC is also supporting scholarships for the impoverished and the country’s athletes. The national Taekwondo team, for example, has been sponsored by OBC and its local wholesale partner Cass Town. Partly as a result, Mongolia’s Taekwondo team won its first medal last year in the Asian Games held in Incheon, Korea, the homeland of martial art. It took home a bronze medal.

But Cass is facing challenging times in Mongolia, where it is sold as a premium brand. Cass enjoyed a 60 percent share of the local beer market share in its early years, but that has shrunk to approximately 4 percent as of 2014, according to Cass Town.

“Cass had a large market share when it was introduced in 1999 and 2000 because that was before the beer market was properly developed,” said Cass Town President Enkhbat Dambadarjaa. “As Cass developed the market, local beers like Sengur and Borgio emerged and the government imposed a 25 percent tariff on import beers in recent years.”

Moreover, since Cass is positioned as a premium beer in Mongolia, with a 20 to 30 percent higher price than local brews, tough economic times in the past couple of years have depressed Cass sales in Mongolia. According to Cass Town, the Mongolian Tugrik has weakened from 1,400 tugrik to the U.S. dollar in 2013 to 1,950 tugrik this year and overall consumption in the country has drastically decreased since 2014.

But the heads of OBC and Cass Town are staying optimistic about future growth in Mongolia thanks to the value of the Cass brand that has been built over 16 years and due to its positioning in the premium beer bracket.

“Cass means a lot to Mongolians because it was the beginning of the Mongolian beer market,” said Dambadarjaa. “And it is still loved by Mongolians because of the contributions OBC has made to Mongolia.”

“Our market share here may have shrunk as the market grew more competitive, but I anticipate it won’t go down further,” OBC CEO Freire Jardim added. “The economic situation isn’t very good at the moment, but Cass will be popular again once the situation gets better.”


BY KIM BONG-MOON [kim.bongmoon@joongang.co.kr]

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Mongolia, land of opportunity for S. Korea: Korean ambassador

ULAANBAATAR, July 9 (Yonhap) — Mongolia is poised to become the next land of opportunity for South Korean firms as it takes steps to attract more foreign investment, Seoul’s top envoy to Ulaanbaatar said Thursday.

In a first step, Mongolia revised its foreign investment laws last year in a bid to improve the business environment for foreign firms.

“The Mongolian economy is rebounding after nearly hitting bottom this year, so many expect it to become a land of opportunity,” Ambassador Oh Song said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency.

In May, an Australian company signed a contract to develop a copper mine in Mongolia, while China and Japan are reported to be closing deals to develop the country’s coal mines.

“As an inland country, Mongolia has a lot of interest in projects to link railways and China and Japan are very eager to take part,” Oh said. “South Korea has also made some investments in the construction of such social infrastructure, but there are still a lot of areas to be developed.”

   As the two countries mark the 25th anniversary of diplomatic relations this year, their ties have expanded across various sectors ranging from medical services to Korean pop culture, with some 30,000 Mongolians currently working in South Korea, the ambassador said.

On Wednesday, Yonhap signed an agreement with Mongolia’s state-run Montsame News Agency under which the two sides will exchange articles promoting their respective countries.

Ambassador Oh Song speaks to Yonhap News Agency in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, on July 9, 2015. (Photo courtesy of South Korean embassy to Ulaanbaatar) (Yonhap)

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Mongolian runway show features cultural pride

By Kang Hyun-kyung "Forget the old, nomadic Mongolia. Explore a new, culturally sophisticated Mongolia." This is the message Mongolian Ambassador Baasanjav Ganbold said he intended to convey to the Korean public through a fashion show his embassy organized to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of Korea-Mongolia diplomatic relations. The runway show at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul on April 8 featured the past, the present and the future of Mongolia through three Mongolian designers' collections. The first collection showed a reinterpretation of Mongolian tradition, followed by cashmere pieces and evening dresses. Ganbold said some of the Mongolian models are world-class professionals who appeared on the catwalks in Europe or the United States. A Mongolian violinist played pop-style music at the show, adding fun and excitement to the anniversary event and drawing applause from the audience. Until last year, Mongolian artists used to perform or showcase their works at exhibitions in Korea every year to celebrate the anniversary. This year, Ambassador Ganbold said, he wanted to try something new and innovative because it marks the 25th anniversary of bilateral relations. Cultural pride motivated him to organize such a unique event. "I thought it would be great to showcase our nomadic and modern lifestyle through a fashion show which demonstrates the evolvement of the country from its past, to the present and the future," the envoy said. "Korea has a lot to offer to help Mongolia achieve economic growth. But at the same time, I think we, Mongolians also have things to offer to Korea. Culture is one of them." Mongolians are culturally sophisticated, he said. Renowned designer Lie Sang-bong, who watched the show at the reception, praised Ambassador Ganbold highly for showcasing his country's culture through such a dynamic event featuring music and high fashion. "I was shocked at the fashion show. I mean that as a compliment. It was fantastic," he said. Lie noted fashion is one of the most effective ways to help the public understand foreign culture because it is part of everybody's life and people know about fashion. "The fashion show helped me build understanding of Mongolian culture. I clearly could see the unique characteristics of Mongolian culture through high fashion that featured on the show. It was a very good idea," he said. "One thing that I regret about today's runway show is that if it were me, I would have tried to add a collection featuring the fashion trends of the host country simply because this event is for the anniversary of bilateral relations." The Embassy of Mongolia hosted another fashion show at the National Assembly on April 9.

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Mongolia marks silver jubilee with fashion

Towering models clad in Mongolian dresses strut the catwalk, glowing from the rays of neon light. The audience watches on in fascination, with both their eyes and cameras zooming in on the scene. 

While it might seem like a fashion show, the venue is actually a diplomatic reception marking the silver jubilee of ties between Mongolia and Korea.

“I have never seen anything like this for the last two years as an ambassador. It was extraordinary,” Azerbaijani Ambassador Ramzi Teymurov said at the event at Lotte Hotel in Seoul on Wednesday.

Bulgarian Ambassador Petar Andonov said, “The show was amazing. I felt touched by the beauty of Mongolian culture, choreography and models.”

Mongolia, wedged between China and Russia, entered the world economy in the early 1990s after four decades under socialism. It now has a fledgling democracy sitting on a treasure trove of gold, coal, copper and uranium, which feeds the country’s growth. 

The country of nomads has now well and truly jumped on the bandwagon of globalization. A new middle class with Western tastes is emerging and people are well-traveled and educated. World-famous luxury brands can also be found in its capital Ulan Bator.

Models pose at a fashion show as part of the silver jubilee reception between Mongolia and Korea at Lotte Hotel in Seoul on Wednesday. (Joel Lee/The Korea Herald)

Mongolian Ambassador Baasanjav Ganbold told The Korea Herald about his country’s multifaceted culture, which combines nomadic and urban elements. 

“Our embassy wanted to showcase the beauty of our nomadic heritage in a contemporary tapestry. By weaving fashion, music and dance together, the show presented powerful snapshots of our past, present and future,” Ganbold said, while referring to the work of Mongolian designers Damdin Onobolar and Javhlangiin Tselmeg. 

Mongolia’s experience of socialism had more freedom than that of China or North Korea, as the nomadic life required free movement across the land. The socialist legacy, rather than being eradicated, has been combined with market elements to create new identities, he said. 

Korea is a gateway to the league of developed nations for Mongolia, Ganbold said. Bilateral trade volume has increased 140-fold since tying the diplomatic knot, making Korea Mongolia’s fourth-largest trading and investment partner.

A total of 1 percent of the Mongolian population ― 25,000 people ― currently live in Korea and over 4,000 Mongolian students study here. 

“Modern Mongolian and Korean cultures are highly complementary, due to our intertwined history and heritage,” the ambassador noted. “With over 100,000 people exchanging visits every year, the growing social interaction is a firm pillar of our partnership.”

Ganbold said Mongolia needs more students studying science, engineering, medicine, information technology and agriculture. While Mongolia has livestock-based agriculture, it wants to learn from Korea’s advanced agricultural science and business models to upgrade its industry, he said. 

“People have to do practical work to lift the economy to Korea’s level. The country needs more applied science majors than social science majors,” Ganbold said. 

The ambassador highlighted the two governments’ commitment to the Korean Peninsula Trust Process and Eurasia Initiative, in regards to Korea’s contribution to regional peace and stability,

Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said in a speech that Mongolia and Korea closely cooperate on regional initiatives, such as the Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation Initiative and the Ulaanbaatar Dialogue on the Northeast Asian Security. 

The Mongolian government has initiated some 30 infrastructure and social development projects totaling nearly $100 billion through public-private partnership deals. 

Korean companies have an opportunity to contribute to Mongolia’s growth, such as in the Tavan Tolgoi coking coal mines project in southern Mongolia. Chinese and Japanese companies have been chosen to take part in the project through a public tender. But the opportunity for Korean comapnies lies in associated infrastructure work, according to the Mongolian embassy. 

By Joel Lee (joel@heraldcorp.com)

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Mongolia wants free trade with Korea

By Kang Hyun-kyung Mongolian Ambassador Baasanjav Ganbold expressed hope that negotiators from his country can sit down with Korean representatives soon to begin talks for a free trade agreement. The proposal came amid Asian country's attempts to diversify its trade relations with countries other than its two key partners — China and Russia — as a counterbalance. If the trade pact is signed, Korea will be the second country to have such a pact with Mongolia, following Japan. "As Mongolian ambassador to Korea, I hope that the two countries can sign the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) as we signed it with Japan earlier this year," Ambassador Ganbold told The Korea Times at the Korea Trade Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) in Seoul on Feb. 25. "Compared with other countries, for example China, I believe Koreans have no reason to be concerned about the pact with Mongolia because the two economies are complimentary." Korean farmers fear that the Korea-China free trade agreement, which the two sides concluded last year, would drive them out of business once it goes into effect. Ganbold was optimistic about EPA negotiations sooner or later, saying that the Korean government responded positively to his offer to start talks to discuss the pact. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Mongolian President Elbegdorj Tsalchia signed the EPA in January, after the two countries began talks in 2012. The Japanese parliament is expected to ratify the pact soon as there are no outstanding issues that concern the Japanese people. Once this is done, the pact may go into effect within this year, according to experts. Mongolia has striven to diversify its diplomatic and economic relations with a variety of countries. Such an effort is seen as the country's balancing act to reduce its heavy reliance on its two neighbors­— China and Russia. "I think that the EPA, if effective, will make it easier for Korean investors to do business in resource-rich Mongolia," Ganbold said. "On the Mongolian side, we need advanced technology from South Korea to develop our mineral resources and achieve economic growth with fewer emissions." He made the remarks on the sidelines of the Korea-Mongolia investment forum organized by the Mongolian Embassy in collaboration with the KOTRA. The two sides organized the event to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Economic slowdown  More than 200 Koreans, mostly small-business owners and those who plan to invest in Mongolia, attended the forum and asked questions to the Mongolian ambassador regarding the country's business environment. Ganbold mentioned about a set of measures his government has introduced in recent years, including tax benefits and measures to improve transparency in business practices there, to attract foreign investors. Some investors presented worries about a slowdown in growth of the Mongolian economy in recent years. Mongolia had achieved double-digit economic growth in the past decade. In 2011, it achieved 17 percent economic growth, compared with a year ago. But the rate has more than halved last year with a 7.5 percent of growth rate. Ambassador Ganbold said the falling growth rate was the result of falling global demand for natural resources, his country's main export item, and economic slowdown of China. He admitted domestic policy failure was also partly responsible for the falling growth rate. Lee Jae-young, executive director of the Russian and CIS Europe Team at the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy in Seoul, was optimistic about the Mongolian economy. He mentioned about the dramatic rebound of the Russian economy in 1999, a year after the country defaulted on its debt following the financial crisis. "In 1998, many foreign companies, including Japanese businesses, pulled their businesses from Russia following the Ruble crisis. Korean conglomerates such as Samsung and LG didn't respond quickly to the crisis because executives of those companies hesitated whether they should pull their companies from Russia or not and as a result kept operating there," he said. "The Russian economy rebounded and achieved economic growth a year later. In the 2000s, it achieved 7 percent average growth. This benefitted the Korean companies based in Russia because demand for their products soared and every Russian loved them." Lee's remarks indicated to some people that the Mongolian economy will grow faster again as it has implemented a set of reform measures to attract more foreign investment. hkang@koreatimes.co.kr,

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Mongolian becomes professor at Korean university

By Jhoo Dong-chan Odkhuu Dorj, 34, an international student from Mongolia, has become a physics professor at Incheon National University (INU), the University of Ulsan said Tuesday. Odkhuu was appointed to an assistant professor in the department of physics there, teaching students in the classes of magnetic and multiferroic materials, graphene and low-dimensional materials, and energy storage materials since last August. Many international students in Korea get academic degrees here and later become professors in their home countries, or teach their native languages in Korean colleges. But Odkhuu's case is very rare for foreigners to become a professor with natural science in a Korean university, according to an official at the University of Ulsan. "It was just unbelievable," said Odkhuu. "I am so grateful. The University of Ulsan gave me an educational opportunity, and INU appointed me as a physics professor. Both universities treated me without prejudice." Odkhuu majored in physics at the National University of Mongolia for bachelor's and Ulaanbaatar University for master's degree. Both universities are known to be the most prestigious schools in Mongolia. Odkhuu came to Korean in 2007 to become a first Mongol researcher of the Asia Pacific Center for Theoretical Physics at the Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province. Odkhuu then entered the University of Ulsan majoring physics for Ph.D. In 2013, his thesis, "Magnetostriction of B2-structured FeX Alloys: A First-principles Study," was granted for the degree under Prof. Hong Soon-cheol's supervision. In his thesis, Odkhuu studies the methods to apply iron alloy, instead of the rare and expensive earth elements, on physical instances in the applied physics. His thesis is believed to be applied in various fields of industries including space science with reduced cost. Prestigious academic journals like "Physical Review B" and "Applied Physics Letters" put his degree thesis in their regular publications. His 10 other works over the applied physics were also published in other renowned journals of the Science Citation Index (SCI). The SCI is a citation index launched in 1964 that covers more than 6,500 notable and significant journals, across 150 disciplines, from 1900 to the present. "My wife also studies at the University of Ulsan with the same major. My wife and me want to contribute to the development of physics education for both countries," Odkhuu said. jhoo@koreatimes.co.kr,

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Mongolia leverages diplomatic ties with North Korea

CSIS Senior Adviser and Korea Chair Victor Cha, Mongolian Ambassador to the United States Bulgaa Altangerel, Mongolian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director General of the Department of Policy Planning and Policy Analysis Tsedendamba Batbayar, and Korea Society President and former U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia Mark C. Minton at a forum examining "Mongolia's Diplomacy with the Two Koreas" at CSIS on Dec. 3, 2014, in Washington, D.C. Twitter/CSIS

WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- "The Korean Peninsula's stability is crucial for maintaining regional peace and security," Mongolia's Minister of Foreign Affairs emphasized Wednesday at a forum examining Mongolia's role in Korean diplomacy co-hosted by the Global Peace Foundation and CSIS in Washington, D.C.Mongolia has "a very significant and a much under appreciated role" to play in diplomatic relations with both North and South Korea, observed Michael Marshall, GPF's director of research and publications.
Indeed, the Mongolian government admits it was only in the past 14 years that it "began to recognize its strategic potential in close relations with the DPRK," said Tsedendamba Batbayar, head of the Foreign Ministry's department of policy planning and policy analysis.
The Mongolian government has since launched the Ulaanbaatar Dialogue on Northeast Asia Security in 2013 and pledged "to do whatever is in our capacity to support the early resumption of the Six-Party Talks" (involving North and South Korea, China, Japan, Russia and the United States) in order to strengthen diplomatic relations and overcome issues through dialogue. Bilateral and multilateral dialogue should be viewed as complimentary, the officials noted.
One of Mongolia's stated foreign policy priorities is to develop "friendly bilateral relations with all the countries in the region" and in doing so, "to strengthen stability and to develop security cooperation in Northeast Asia."
Dialogue, Mongolian Ambassador to the United States Bulgaa Altangerel emphasized in his remarks, is the key to peace and development.
Although Mongolia prides itself in its "friendly relations" with North Korea, that relationship has not prevented Mongolia from vocally opposing Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program.
At a time when many of the world's democracies are at odds with the totalitarian North Korean state, Mongolia has a unique and promising role to play, and it is making that possibility known.
Batbayar told UPI on the eve of the forum that Mongolia strives to "be an honest broker" on the international scene and hopes that it can "open up new channels for dialogue" with North Korea.

Both Mongolia and the Korean Peninsula, former U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia Mark C. Minton observed at the forum, are caught between powerful countries with whom good relations are in their interest, "even ones from whom they are feeling tremendous pressure." And at the same time, Mongolia and the Koreas "also have a very strong interest in having as much strategic leverage and breathing room as they can possibly design."
This, said Minton, explains their willingness to engage in diplomatic outreach. "They want to have other partners. They want some traction in regional affairs and in global affairs that allows them to escape the rather vice-like dynamic of just existing and having diplomatic space between two powerful neighbors."
Mongolia's ambassador echoed that sentiment in his reflection on his country's Third Neighbor policy, whose purpose is to build bilateral relations with countries other than China and Russia. "It is a policy that helps us not be dependent," Altangerel said.
"More work in this direction would serve both countries," Minton said of Mongolia and Korea's diplomatic dialogue.
Looking ahead, Batbayar noted that Mongolia will host an Ulaanbaatar Dialogue summit focused on energy, infrastructure and regional connectivity in June 2015.

Source:UPI

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Korea denies report on ex-Mongolian President's exile

By Yi Whan-woo Nambaryn Ennkhbayar The government denied a news report, Monday, about a former Mongolian President seeking political refugee status in Korea. "We have not received any requests from Nambaryn Ennkhbayar seeking asylum here," a Korea Immigration Service (KIS) official said on condition of anonymity. Ennkhbayar, 56, was convicted of corruption by Ulaanbaatar's highest court in 2012 after serving his four-year presidential term from June 2005 to June 2009. Seoul's immigration office added that Ennkhbayar has been living in Korea since August of last year after the Mongolian government granted him a pardon, citing his "health." "Our records show he arrived in Korea at that time and has also traveled abroad back and forth since then," an official at the refugee section of the KIS said. "We can't confirm whether he has visited Mongolia or not after staying here. We also can't reveal whether his family is with him in Korea," he added. According to the JoongAng Ilbo, the former Mongolian President was sentenced to two-and-half years in jail in 2012 for illegally acquiring government-owned properties, including plants and hotels. The newspaper said Ennkhbayar and his family members owned these properties under their own names. It added that he and his family sought political asylum in Korea after the Mongolian government granted him a pardon. Citing Ulaanbaatar media reports in September, JoongAng Ilbo reported that Ennkhbayar's move is seen as a bid to dodge possible re-investigation over past corruption charges. In 2005, Ennkhbayar was elected as the third President of the former communist country. He ran for his second presidency in 2009 but failed in his attempt. The Independent Authority against Corruption under the Ulaanbaatar government arrested him in 2012 for corruption allegations involving government-owned real estate. He reportedly claimed such corruption was practiced as a "custom" among government officials. He had close ties with former Korean Presidents ― the late Roh Moo-hyun and Lee Myung-bak ― during his presidential years. As a Buddhist, Ennkhbayar also won prizes awarded by Korean Buddhist organizations in both 2006 and 2007 for his piety. yistory@koreatimes.co.kr,

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