- Presidential inauguration ceremony held -

        On June 26, the 6th President of Mongolia U.Khurelsukh was inaugurated in the Great Hall of the State Palace.

At the ceremony, the new president took the presidential oath and paid tribute to the state flag of Mongolia, while the outgoing President Kh.Battulga handed over the state seal.

Upon receiving his seal, the new president said, “I have solemnly accepted the seal of the Mongolian state, vowing to uphold my constitutional rights and responsibilities fairly. I would like to express my deep gratitude to the honorable people and voters who gave me the great destiny to lead the great historical Mongolian state. We Mongolians have never lost our call for freedom, our sense of human rights, our desire for justice, and our principle of equality.

People have always fought for this freedom, justice and values from generation to generation. The main thing is to live in a society where justice is established and to live with confidence and happiness in the future. This is the kind of society that the people dream of and demand,” he continued.

“An independent judiciary and prosecutor’s office create social justice. Citizens need fair trial, judges need professionalism and ethics, and the judiciary and prosecutor’s office should uphold the rule of law to establish an independent judiciary. Therefore, I will work for the establishment of a democratic and just state in order to establish justice in society.”

“It is necessary to define the policy of using natural resources in accordance with the long-term policy of the state, to concentrate the benefits of mineral resources in the national wealth fund, to develop Mongolia as a country with a strong economy, producer and exporter. However, the subsoil is a limited resource. We must always remember that the spiritual wealth of our people is an inexhaustible wealth. We have endless wealth of Mongolian spirit, history, customs, works, language, culture, literacy, education, and nomadic civilization,” he added.

“The greatest wealth of Mongolia is you, the Mongolian people. As the head of state, I will work to develop competitive Mongolian people, to promote our heritage, history and traditions to the world, to pass them on to our children, to educate the younger generation in patriotism, and to educate our people. I believe that we need to take initiative to maintain ecological balance, such as climate change, desertification, water, soil, air pollution, and rehabilitation of natural degradation caused by mining and industry. I think this should be the core of the policy,” he noted.

U.Khurelsukh competed in the presidential election with the motto “Mongolia is the owner of its wealth”. Preceding the ceremony, the president paid respect to the Statue of Chinggis Khaan, accompanied by his spouse, and the ceremony wrapped up with the president’s tribute to the Nine White Banners of the State, exalted at the Ceremonial Hall of the State Palace.

In accordance with the amendment to the procedures for the swearing-in of the president, the outgoing President Kh.Battulga was seen off by an honorary state guards and relevant officials.

NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL CONVENES, ITS COMPOSITION RENEWED

On June 25, President U.Khurelsukh announced a meeting of the National Security Council and issued a decree to replace head of the President’s Office U.Shijir with former deputy prime minister Ya.Sodbaatar.

The president also released Secretary of the National Security Council A.Gansukh from his duty and appointed J.Enkhbayar in his stead. 

Former Deputy Prime Minister of Mongolia and leading member of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences (MAS) Ya.Sodbaatar graduated from the Institute of Technology of MAS (now Ulaanbaatar University) with a bachelor’s degree in physics and engineering, from the National Academy of Governance with a master’s degree in management, and from the Mongolian State
University of Education with a doctoral degree in historical sciences.

He worked as a researcher at the Institute of Thermal Engineering and Industrial Ecology under MAS from 1997 to 1999, as secretary-general of the Mongolian Democratic Socialist Youth Union from 1999 to 2005, as deputy prime minister of industry and trade from 2005 to 2008, as head, deputy head and general state inspector of the General Agency for Specialized Inspection from 2009 to 2011, as secretary of the Mongolian People’s Party from 2011 to 2012, as minister of road and transport development from 2018 to 2019, and as deputy prime minister from 2020 to 2021. He was elected to Parliament in 2012 and 2016.

Senior adviser to the prime minister J.Enkhbayar graduated from the Military University in 1991, from the National University of Mongolia with a bachelor’s degree in law in 1999, and from Maastricht University with a master’s degree in business administration in 2005.

He served as chairman of the board of Nekhii LLC and Suljmel LLC from 1992 to 2000, as head of the Customs Department for Petroleum and Excise Taxes from 2000 to 2002, as head and deputy head of the Inspection Division of the Ulaanbaatar Customs Office from 2002 to 2004, as advisor to the Mongolian Customs General Administration from 2004 to 2006, as deputy head of the State Specialized Inspection Agency from 2006 to 2008, as minister of defense in 2012, and as senior advisor to the prime minister in 2020. He was elected to Parliament in 2008, 2012 and 2016.

During the council meeting, Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene introduced to the National Security Council a proposal to continue the government’s decision on providing additional funding for the health sector, granting monthly allowance of 100,000 MNT to each child, and foregoing utility bills (electricity, heat, and waste bills) of households and some enterprises until the end of this year, as well as extending a 50 percent discount rate for coal briquettes until March of 2022.

At the meeting, President U.Khurelsukh and Speaker of Parliament G.Zandanshatar expressed their support. Therefore, within the next week, the government will submit to Parliament a detailed proposal on continuing some measures to support families and businesses, and providing necessary additional funding for the health sector. The government relief will end on July 1, and Minister of Finance B.Javkhlan announced that besides child allowances, all relief will be stopped on July 1. If an extension is decided, the state budget will need to be amended.

SOLDIER FAINTS DURING INAUGURATION PARADE

An inaugural parade for President U.Khurelsukh consisting of 600 troops, paraded on Sukhbaatar Square on June 26.

The General Staff of the Mongolian Armed Forces previously reported that it would not hold a military parade dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the People’s Revolution, State Flag Day of Mongolia and the presidential inauguration ceremony due to the increasing number of daily COVID-19 cases in recent days. During the parade, a military serviceman who took part in the parade fainted. There were speculations on social media that the soldier may have been infected with COVID-19. In connection with this, the General Staff of the Armed Forces reported, “Officials who took part in the parade were fully vaccinated. The troop may have had sun poisoning. His condition is now normal and he returned home. Standing with a mask for long hours may have caused him to faint. It is a matter of personal preparation and organization. There are no employees who have been infected with COVID-19.”

COMEDIAN ARRESTED FOR EXPRESSING VIEW

On the presidential inauguration day, some people led by Chairman of Zon Masses Party E.Odbayar announced that they would hold a demonstration to mark the day as National Mourning Day. E.Odbayar was arrested and taken to the police station of Sukhbaatar District.

During the inauguration of the new president, people gathered in front of the statue of S.Zorig with the slogan “No Naadam”. The police arrested a man for “unregistered gathering”.

On the same day, comedian D.Amartuvshin was arrested for expressing his view at Sukhbaatar Square during the inauguration. “I shouted, ‘Follow infection control regimen and shame on you’. Then the police arrested me. The regulations of the State Emergency Commission did not apply there. I do not understand the reasons for my detention,” the comedian said.

RESIDENTS LIGHT MEMORIAL CANDLES

On the same day, Ulaanbaatar residents lit memorial candles for the victims of the COVID-19 pandemic on Sukhbaatar Square.

A total of more than 500 people have died since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in Mongolia. The Democratic Party also called on President U.Khurelsukh to declare June 25 as a national day of mourning instead of holding a parade.