On February 24, 2017, Mongolia and Japan celebrated 45 years of diplomatic relations.
Mongolia-Japan’s relations are rich in both history and myth. The two countries’ relations can be dated back to the 13th century. The Mongolian empire, under the rule of Kublai Khan, sought to invade Japan in 1274 and 1281, only to be deterred by storms (known as the “divine wind” in Japan) coupled with malfunctioning boats made by the Song Dynasty war-prisoners. According to the history books, Kublai Khan’s message to the Japanese shogun was something along the lines of: “You are the ruler of a small country; pay us a tribute… or else.”
Of course, the modern day relationship does not involve attempted invasions, divine typhoons, or malfunctioning boats, but rather political and diplomatic dialogue, economic relations, and people-to-people affairs. On February 24, 2017, Mongolia and Japan celebrated the 45th anniversary of diplomatic relations in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. As Mongolia’s foreign policy apparatus expands both regionally and globally, Japan serves as a source of democratic principles and values as well as a political, economic, and social model for Mongolia’s own development.
On February 24, 1972, the People’s Republic of Mongolia and Japan established diplomatic relations. The 1970s were a crucial period in Mongolia’s foreign policy. The Mongolian government under Y. Tsedenbal had far-sighted foreign policy ambitions beyond the Soviet Union; thus, the recognition of Mongolia’s sovereignty by other states was fundamental. By establishing diplomatic relations, Mongolia was able to engage with rest of the world politically, economically, diplomatically, and socially. With a tremendous effort from Y. Tsedenbal, many of Mongolia’s diplomatic relations were established under his government, including Japan.
Economic ties were limited at the start. Foreign aid and developmental projects were controlled and restricted in socialist Mongolia until the 1990 democratic revolution. Nevertheless, in 1977, even with limited market access, Japan invested in the Gobi Cashmere Factory’s technology, production, and distribution, thus jump-starting the Mongolian cashmere sector.
Since 1991, Japan has been financing Mongolia’s transportation, energy, and mining sectors with investments such as the Railway Transportation Rehabilitation Project I and II, the Rehabiliatation Project of the 4t h Thermal Power Plant in Ulaanbaatar , and th e Baganuur and Shivee-ovoo Coal Mine Development Project. By 2005, Japan had invested $391.07 million in Mongolia’s development.
