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1 1 (October 26, 2022)

handle is hein.crs/govejfr0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Mongolia Updated October 26, 2022 Overv'w Mongolia is a landlocked country that shares borders with two powerfulneighbors, Russia andChina. With a population of about 3.3 million and a land area slightly smaller than Alaska, Mongolia is the most sparsely inhabited country in the world. About halfofthe country's population lives in the capital, Ulaanbaatar. While Mongolians were traditionally nomadic pastoralists, the country's economy is now highly dependent on its extensive mineralres ources, with extractive industries accounting for the vastmajority ofMongolian exports. For almost 70 years after it declared independence from China in 1921, Mongolia was as atellite state of the Soviet Union, under the one-party rule of the communist Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP). Following a peacefulrevolution in 1990, Mongolia embarked on a successful democratic transition. Mongolia's foreign relations are driven by a desire to balance Chinese and Rus sian influence by engaging with a range of partnes, including the United States and other countries such as South Korea andJapan. Some Members of Congress have expressed support for exp anding U.S. engagement with Mongolia. Sources: Central IntelligenceAgency, The World Factbook, 2022. Map created by CRS. PoLtkal Background Mongolia's politicalsystemis semi-presidential, with a parliament and prime minister as well as a popularly elected president. The Mongolian prime minister is the head of government with primary responsibility for executive ministries, while the president plays a primary role in foreign policy, chairs the National Security Council, and serves as the commander in chief of the armed forces. Although Mongolia has a multiparty system, since the country's democratization in 1990 political power has alternated between the two majorp arties, the Mongolian People's Party (MPP, the successor to the MPRP) and the Democratic Party (DP). The DP and the MPP have established a trackrecord of peacefultransitions of power. For mos t of its democratic history, Mongolia had a divided government, with the presidency and the p arliamentary majority held by different parties. That changed in 2021, when the MPP won the presidency after having secured a supermajority in parliament in 2020. Mongolia's June 2021 presidential election delivered a decisive victory for MPP candidate Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, who had served as print minis ter untilhe resigned fromthat post in January 2021 amid protests over his government's handling ofthe COVID-19 pandemic. The State Department characterizes Mongolia's achievements in terms of democratizationandmarket reforms as considerable, butdescribes institutional weakness and widespread corruption as enduring challenges. According to the State Dep artment and other observers, corruptionremains widespread at all levels of government, and the politicization of anticorruption efforts hampers their effectiveness. That s aid, Mongolia has passed the Millennium Challenge Corporation's scorecard on controlof corruption and democratic rights every year since 2018. Mongolia is the only formerly communist country in Asia classified as free by the U.S. nongovernmental organization FreedomHous e. According to Freedom House, politicalrights and civilliberties in Mongolia have been finmly institutionalized. While observers have generally considered elections in Mongolia to be free and fair, the Economist Intelligence Unit categorizes the country as a flawed democracy, citing corruption and political volatility. Economy Mongolia's economy is highly dependent onextractive industries, and thecountry sends most of its exports to China, rendering it vulnerable to fluctuations in commodity prices and developments in the Chinese economy. Mongolia has extensive deposits of minerals including copper, gold, coal, molybdenum, uranium, tin, and tungsten. While Mongolia's economy traditionally was based onherding and agriculture, thenining sector now accounts for over 25% ofthe country's gross domestic product(GDP). The World Bankcalculates thatMongolia's GDP contractedby 4.4% in 2020 as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a weak recovery of 1.4% growth in 2021. The World Bankprojects thatMongolia's GDP will grow by a modest 2.5% in 2022, hampered by border closures due to China's zero -COVID policy and the impact of the war in Ukraine throughhigher prices of imported food, fuel, and fertilizers. The World Bank forecasts that economic growth will accelerate and exceed 6% annually in 2023-2025. Mongolia remains economically dependenton Russia and China. China accounts for 89% of Mongolian exports and 33% of Mongolian imports. Russia is Mongolia's second-

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