Why Mongolia Is Turning to Central Asia
- Amar Adiya
- Aug 3
- 3 min read
Ulaanbaatar is not abandoning its Third Neighbour Policy. It is quietly adding a regional one.
President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh has now done something no Mongolian president had done before. He visited all five Central Asian republics. And Tajik President Emomali Rahmon’s visit to Ulaanbaatar in July 2026 completed the diplomatic sweep, following exchanges with Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan over the past three years.
It would be easy to dismiss the flurry as preparation for COP17, the UN summit on desertification that Mongolia hosts in August 2026. It is better understood as something larger. Mongolia is quietly adapting the logic of its Third Neighbour Policy.
Want to read more?
Subscribe to mongoliaweekly.org to keep reading this exclusive post.
