Mongolia is very interested in cooperation with Russia

Expert of the Russian-Mongolian Business Council for small and medium-sized businesses, cross-border and interregional trade, General Director of "Business Contact" company Alexander Sidorov speaks about the established practice of trade between Russia and Mongolia, as well as about today's opportunities and prospects for working with this country.

— Alexander Alekseevich, first of all, tell us about Mongolia in general. What kind of country is this, what is its uniqueness and how can it be interesting for a Russian?

— Mongolia is amazing in many aspects. More than 3.2 million people live there. This country, with which Russia has the third longest, after Kazakhstan and China, a common border — 3.4 thousand kilometers. Very friendly people live there, open to communication with Russia. This is largely due to the fact that during the Soviet era, more than 80% of the population of Mongolia studied with us. The youth of Mongolia today, of course, to a greater extent receive education in the West or on the territory of their own country, but they do not forget Russia either, they are making plans for interaction with Russia already in the business plane.

If you visit Mongolia once, this country will never let you go. It attracts, beckons, makes you return. Its original, centuries-old culture, legacy of the past, extraordinary color, extraordinary, almost untouched by human hand, nature of the nomadic steppes attract travelers from all over the world like a magnet. Especially often Chinese, Koreans, Japanese, Russians visit Mongolia as tourists. They come to the vast expanses of Mongolia, get up in the steppes, spread their arms and are charged with the special energy of this area, which originates from distant millennia.

Today, Mongolia is actively developing. In the capital, the city of Ulaanbaatar, new microdistricts, cottage settlements are being built, the city is growing before our eyes. Recently, near the capital, a modern airport "Genghis Khan" was built that meets world requirements.

In Mongolia, the hotel sector is growing with enviable constancy; There are both 2-star hotels and luxurious 5-star hotels. The number of restaurants and cafes offering authentic local cuisine, along with European ones, is increasing.

Thus, Mongolia, according to the current circumstances, related primarily to the development of the country's economy, is becoming one of the priority areas for our business.

— Why is Mongolia so interesting for our business?

— I would single out 4 directions.

The first — building materials. Since now Mongolia is being actively built, the need for building materials is very high. The demand is huge for everything that is used in the construction, repair and reconstruction of structures.

Second direction — Food. The spectrum, again, is very broad, but may be subject to seasonality. For example, at the end of winter in Mongolia, the New Year — white month holiday (from February 21 to 25), so the demand for confectionery and groceries is very high, because according to local tradition, sweets should always be on the festive table and act as a gift to relatives and friends.

The third direction — agricultural products. If earlier Mongolia bought almost everything in China, today they grow and produce 90% of agricultural products by share. And, therefore, they need seeds, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, spare parts — everything that is in Russia.

And the last direction — tourism. I repeat, Mongolia is a unique country. Wildlife, attractions, high level of service (accommodation, meals) — everything contributes to the growth of the tourist flow. The Mongolian government recently announced the 2023-2025 Years of visiting Mongolia. A whole range of measures has been developed and is being implemented to promote the development of tourism.

I would like to say a few words about meat in Mongolia. Those who have tried it call it a real "drug"; meat eaters, it's so tasty. The most common types: beef, goat meat, lamb. All meat is environmentally friendly, as the animals are kept on free pasture, which means they eat only grass and move a lot. Unusually tasting meat —is the real key to the development of gastronomic tourism in the country.

— Say a few words about one of the largest international exhibitions in Ulaanbaatar "Gateway to Asia".

— Exhibition "Gateway to Asia" company «Business Contact» has been running for over 20 years. The main objective of the exhibition — promotion of Russian small and medium-sized businesses to the Mongolian market and a little to the Chinese market. During this time, thousands of Russian companies have already passed through us. These are mainly companies from the Siberian Federal District, there are companies from Bashkiria, Udmurtia and other regions of our country. From March 22 to March 25, the 37th exhibition took place.

— Tell us about the free trade economic zone on the border of Russia and Mongolia?

— The Altanbulag free trade zone, near the Russian border town of Kyakhta, was established back in 2006, but it opened, having received legal status, only in 2014. Unfortunately, only one company is currently working there from the Russian side - resident — "Business Contact", which is a big omission. On the Mongolian side, the demand for Russian goods is huge. I understand that entering a new market is always difficult. But, if you make "single window services" — a trading platform for Russian goods, where there is assistance with certification, and a showroom, and much more, then our small and medium-sized businesses would only benefit from this, and Mongolia itself is very open in this direction. Therefore, contact us, everything will work out together.

Mongolia and China also have a free trade zone. On the Chinese side, it is located near the city of Erlian — the northern gates of China, and from the Mongolian side near the city of Zamyn-Uud. Before covid, very active work was carried out in the free zone, then there was a two-year decline. Now trade cooperation is growing again.

Today, the economy of Mongolia is largely dependent on China because the enterprises that make the country's main budget revenues, such as, for example, Erdenes Tavantolgoi JSC, (the country's largest exporter of coal) and Mining and Processing Plant "Erdenet" (one of the largest enterprises in Asia for the production of copper concentrate) sell their products specifically to China. But, I repeat, Mongolia is very interested in cooperation with Russia.

— Could you please tell us about the possibilities of transport logistics between Russia and Mongolia?

— Airplanes do not fly from Moscow to Ulaanbaatar yet. But there are two flights a week from Irkutsk, four flights from Ulan-Ude, and now they have launched a new direction — Novosibirsk—Ulaanbaatar. In the future — opening of a flight from Khabarovsk. Twice a week, the Irkutsk—Ulaanbaatar train runs back and forth.

And, most importantly, the Mongols have recently repaired their part of the road, which had been in a terrible state for many years, connecting Irkutsk with Ulaanbaatar. It turns out 650 km from Irkutsk to the border, to Kyakhta, and there another 350 km to Ulaanbaatar. They are great fellows. Today, the Mongols continue to repair this road from the capital and further to the border with China. This means that in the future, Russian cargo can also be transported through the territory of Mongolia to China along this new route.