you. know you're welcome to worlds apart situated between russia and china then the goal is the world's most landlocked country and yet according to my guest today this isn't a strategic witness but rather a competitive advantage how has one goal they managed to overcome its geographical limitations and can if used is experienced to punch above its weight in the geopolitical agreeing to discuss that i'm now joined by them didn't solve but the current uncle as minister of foreign affairs and this is good to talk to you thank you very much for your time thank you for the nutrition now we are recording this interview on the sidelines of the valdai forum and many of the discussions here today are about hugh crane and how it's being sandwiched between russia and the west lots of conflict mongolia also finds itself within two great powers russia and china and yet from what i understand it is a source of development rather than discord how do you explain that well. we're

developing the. ballast relationship with our neighbors and it's our priority. with russia and china we have strategic partnership and really it is a trust confidence relationship the most important thing is really the fact that you give priority to this relationship you because you're the aleutian ship on your strengths of course we're different countries that means we have differences that we do not have differences but it's very important to menage those differences and to capitalize on your strengths but from what i understand it took you sometime to arrive at that perspective because you said in one of the interviews that before men go away used to view its landmark status as a limitation what allows for that change of perspective and this new vision of being landlocked and having no access to the sea. as something that you can

actually gain from here you know two things again under do love the sea convention we have the right to access the sea and our neighbors due to a very good neighborly relationship which is of strategic nature we're having no problem with our access and that strength of a true national law we should be also using poorly which means it is you know in dealing with our two very big neighbors still we're also using their goodwill plus a traditional law as well that's what the executive with. these two markets themselves are very big markets for example china is one of the prime you know export markets of mongolian commodity it's russia is also a very big market but then it's worth buying more from russia then sell it at that

test we were outlining here in our discussions with our russian friends we're telling them almost with problems that we don't like this deficit in this has to be changed and i seem you tell them that not then now wait that for example the current administration of the united states tells its trade partners as well what what i really think is that we're using gold you know instruments that are in our dispositions which means longstanding friendly history of cooperation and therefore when we are communicating this sort of messages of ours we really need also understanding on the other hand our trade with our neighbors is beneficial to our neighbors as well it creates jobs in the you know addison provinces and regions of our neighbors so it's not that it is not an unfair really. as you were talking about mutual benefits you know you're being very

positive. and the russian china's relationship in public is all about smiles and handshakes but behind closed doors that you can be a pretty tough negotiators and i've heard many stories in moscow off how in the answer above the chinese for when negotiating the price of gas with the russians i'm sure there are many other examples as well i assure that either of them is not using or not trying to and least to your country as as a leverage against the other. well you should ask them ask them another way of knowing if. either one of the really think is that it it really is a trilateral relationship which means it's not only about moscow and beijing it's about us as well and we're there and our game is there to keep the ballasts that it matters because when we are seeing that look here it's

a little excessive war and about the good thing is that we're telling esther to egypt partners there isn't the agreement to toe almost all of the problems so as you said and as i said before it you know yes i am positive but i say that were different countries and therefore we have differences not everything is chocolate sweet good to know is that it's a trilateral relationship at truly trilateral relationship but we're wherever there is russia and china the united states is never too far away what's your current state of affairs with washington very close very close and we just had a visit to for prime minister to the united states and up until now we had a comprehensive partnership and now we have extended the level of our cooperation to an extended. comprehensive partnership so we're already and

making one move ahead in terms of advancing a relationship that really means you know trade technology education culture you know we are you know taking into fox news and we are. you know on the policy based decisions we deliberately are working to expand them now the iraq all of the trump administration and into the white house has changed the american relationship with many countries both foes and fred. to the war i say are you saying that man go away is a rare exception to that everybody heard the speech of president trump at the general assembly and he said he talked about principled pride his message the doctrine of u.s. policy and the u.s. is saying whoa we are requesting the countries of the world to respect their sovereignty and then to return they will be respecting and working with them they

will not be trying to have other countries have certain types of you know systems it's their business so you see in the other words this principle pragmatism is you know the way we also see the foreign policies of other countries as well and therefore you know we're really trying to catch the moments that are. you know positive on which we can build the cooperation on the bilateral basis with our partners that you're being very diplomatic as i'm sure you either have to be but about a month ago mongolia together with russia and china to quieten the biggest military exercise to be held in northeast asia in more than three decades and unlike other military drills which usually focus on honing specific skills that give us thought many aversive were simulating a war scenario. who could possibly threaten mongolia with

a ground war. you know it's not about threatening god threads but it's about you know if our neighbors or you talk about pragmatism i'm not sure if you do something you have a pragmatic reason for that exactly therefore we have our military doesn't matter how small it is but a state has to have its own military so that's one thing secondly if you have a military they'd better be trained and then they better be interoperable with their neighbors because for example due to our very longstanding relationship with saudi at union then and many of our military officers were treated in russia and then you know many of our officers were pretty comfortable that we know you know. you know russian maneuvers tactics that cetera but with time

we started you know if you do not keep training muslims something behind the minister i'm sorry for interjecting bread my point that i made earlier was that it's not just any other military drill which usually focus on improving in hansing the coordination and cooperation those maneuvers had a very specific scenario a scenario of a ground war which tells me at least that your partners and your neighbors moscow and beijing believe that that scenario is probable do you share that oh you know the military have their own way of thinking and the military has to be ready for any kind of you know activities possible activities it would be in their leave to think that oh it's very remote it won't be happening if you are in the business of building strategic thinking.

you cannot afford to assume that something will not happen now mongo is very straightforward about wanting to grow all of the russian chinese trade but any benefit could be a liability both moscow's and beijing's relations with washington are. quiet complicated right now are you food we insulated from the potential fallout from. the bickering that both russia and china on one side and the united states on another. of course the risk is there and therefore we're really also trying to counterbalance this sort of risks and therefore we have third neighbor policy and on the basis of that approach we're building very strong ties with our third neighbors as well so that in case of problems we still have

live vibrant commercial relationships with other countries so therefore the risks are there we really want this to stop and we hope that at some stage you know the party is will come to terms even in the countries with the most close relationship the rather differences but if you really start only building attending those differences and then attending them with negative approaches then at times you don't solve the problems but you exist the important thing is that no matter how difficult it is to keep the dialogue now let me ask you specifically about the trumpet ministrations intense focus on china's trade policies one could make a case that if china's experts deny that states are inhibited it may encourage beijing you expand our other markets even more could be actually

a beneficiary of the sino american trade wars let me be very diplomatic here we do not want to benefit on the loss of any of our partners so we really want to keep our way of life to keep this relationship with everybody so therefore i really. i really think that. they find a common language but in terms of china's position they were i think. this discussion over the trade deficit it was there already long before if another obama administration and many administrations were talking about this trade deficit rate so china was already anticipating that at some stage this could come up in my interpretation of their response is that this belt and road idea was already put in

place back in two thousand i think thirteen in this was already in anticipation in kids something happens they would want it to have other markets where they would be also that way or heat or do you think they would develop that initiative regard myself their relationship with washington. of course they would have done it regardless of that but still i think they were war aware of this sort of thing that's one thing secondly i mean central asian economies this frontier of kong or commie out of crisis they were new markets then they provided new opportunities for their goods and services so naturally as you say with or without this new you know problems they would have been already dealing with it but.

opening up these new markets and the surety access of their products and services and i said we have to take a very short break now but we will be back in just a few moments. when lawmakers manufacture consensus instance of public wealth. when they're moving closer to protect themselves. with the flaming. lips and be the one percent. it's nothing to ignore middle of the room sick. room the real news is.

to get up off the ground serve begins. if. something sounds maybe. mislead it's actually. a visual switch to go away from your office or. the officer did a kind of lunge for the web in one smith's and then when i haven't done trace one as i didn't see them i never saw any contact with. any kind of went back to where they were so the answer is back here they're going again fifteen feet apart at this point and that's when the officer saw his gun in the tree. you want to make sure that the quality is not just a slogan of misery but. he's associated with

a. believe how can you have it wasn't this the. saving investing. rolled in increasing this over the national so that we could distribute everything. welcome back to worlds apart with something unfold but minister of foreign affairs of mongolia minister going to see a rare example in asia of a country that gets along with pretty much all its neighbors near and far and i heard a number of american experts for example from the brookings institution suggest that because of that it may serve as. a house and of the east is that your

intention we wouldn't mind but we do not have. this sort of. established goal of becoming what you know one because if you don't you'll get the frustrations so you better know that sort of situation. what we have in the world with this country what what we have is already pretty good enough for us we do not really want to be this hostile for many things but if the countries choose mongolia we really don't and yet just the other day a month ago issued an invitation to own the leader of north korea it's you visit your country whenever he find suitable and that's corrine sides with the prospect of a second meeting between the north korean leader the american president. apparently there is a search for of the most convenient for that what do you think a lot about are can offer that singapore wasn't able to provide singapore is

a great place and they could provide everything so we're not in this sort of competition we can provide something more in cetera no one goes object is very simple this world peace order and this special that the peace in our region is the most fundamental capital we have so far and we're benefiting from it and we really do not want to be this free riders of this you know great value that we have so we really want to. contribute to the strengthening and console dition of his to the extent that we can so therefore as long as this peace talks are in place the mirror were it happens it's already good enough for us with all due respect i think you're being very modest because i see human foreign policy as

a little bit more attractive than you describe for example back in two thousand and thirteen your president and president was the first head of state to visit north korea after kim jong un took power and human tain there pretty good relationship with that country ever since can you give any advice for example to the americans or other members of the international community of how to engage north korea productively our relationship with north korea did not come about yesterday in the north korea's history of this city is seventy years we are one of very few countries that has seventy years of history of diplomatic relationship with them when i was being born to the ground our ambassador most of them best individuals living in. one a few of those that stayed here you know to show the solidarity was among go

in the best they never forget that so. during korea war there were many orphans and although mongolia is a small country but with all our heart we tried to help them and we brought many korean more friends to come and stay in mongolian families so already we have family relationships so the relationships are very deep and very longstanding and on the basis of this we are really communicating with the most koreans and we're really trying to also bring across the idea that the nuclearization is a much better option because and in this there is no double standard or hypocrisy we are new to nuclear free status country so we're telling well that's what we are and this policy is working for us and we're trying to communicate you

know this denuclearized you know situation may contribute much better to their security then the. nuclear programs well the united states clearly is not approaching north korea in the same. fashion but the same apheresis and humanitarian affairs what is it about them american approach to north korea that anything is not working i think so far the approach is working was working this in the trump approach of threatening frist and then pulling back is that a good this also is. this also diplomatic you know. tactics diplomatic negotiations are very long you know process so. in fact they were tried to approach in the from

a different angle the previous administrations and on the basis of that experience this administration knows that or create this approach is not quite working now let's try something else and then there approach it with this different approach it was pretty earing approach actually and it really faced oh a lot of criticism in washington as well but yet they did it to go ahead with this and now we have these talks i mean all that north korea as far as i remember and i've been in this poll policy for quite a long time in the north koreans were saying that we want to sit down with the americans and talk and this was not happening now it's happening so it's a more we have now north and south korea have just agreed to begin reconnecting with rail and road links something that was math with concern in the united states

americans. i fear that this me undermined the current sanctions regime do you see that as a kind of a bad called good cop routine or do you think there are genuine disagreements between saul and washington on how to approach north korea a very important factor in the change of situation was this new policy of. the south korean administration that thawing of relationship between south and north was a very strong impetus and bases for the u.s. more. in our talks and therefore i think both south korea and the u.s. are in very close communication and it's not secret they're mean everybody knows this and this you know negotiation is being carry carried out in synchronized efforts so i'm sure there are consultations going on whenever

a north korea's mentioned the issue of human rights usually comes up and i know that you served as the chairman of the parliamentary subcommittee on human rights i assume this issue is near and dear to your heart. how do you think the international community should approach that subject when it talks to north korea you know human rights is to ssion i think. is one of the most fundamental with shouldn't we human beings and chip and at any cost against anybody this should be protected we have this human inst instincts actually of protecting each other therefore when the reasons you no problem with human rights you need to talk about them. but i'm sure you know that there is a very deep skepticism at least in this country that western countries may be instrumental lising the issue of human rights too much exaggerating it when it is

politically expedient ignoring it when it's politically inconvenient do you think the current international discourse of human rights is genuine and productive in terms of actual have trusting the subject. i believe it's genuine i believe it's genuine but of course you know we're not in heaven we're on planet earth and this place is not perfect so i do not rule out there are certain problems right but in general in general just go around them ask who does not agree with the supremacy of human rights everybody would agree which country does not protect its own citizens all the countries including the country we were just talking about they would be claiming that we're protecting our citizens this fundamental interest in protecting human

rights is pretty genius but when it comes to the real implementation there could be problems whenever these problems are we should be one by one settling them but we should not be really trying to make it perfect right away that will cause a lot of mess go ahead its own transformation from at socialist state capitalist state looking at north korea what do you think presents a greater danger that the region and to the world as a whole preserving the north korean system in a state that exists right now with its nuclear weapons whether it's repressive government or perhaps the efforts to change it but the bigger danger. no the bigger risk is the continuation of nuclear policy this and preserving nuclear weapons or an attempt to keep it going on that would be

a much bigger risk the rest as long as their region is peaceful then you know the rest will be happening as a result of the interaction. still in the under the international law under the un charter you know the principles of software and independence are the fundamental you know norms of international law but through interaction i think there will be certain reforms and changes especially now chairman jim warren is talking about focusing more on the economy and they already made their party decisions to focus more on the economy focusing more on the economy from our on the experience from the experience of russia mongolia we all lived in socialist society if you want to change your economy there will be reforms

and changes it will be just necessary while minister i have to thank you for you being very generous with your time and thank you for being with us today thank you i encourage our viewers to keep this conversation going on our social media pages of the series and think wasting time here and of all the heart of. all. when i came back from iraq. marijuana her was cocaine methamphetamine so anything that's altering trying to get us out.

that bad mindset using a chemical that would be so. i want to be drinking and drinking just killing myself. alcoholics drink to get drunk alcoholics drink to feel normal. that's why it's this way drug addicts do. a shot while still feeling and their. star cool under which these guys are going through to it it just means to. need to be helped and pushed on by the v.a.'s are as drugs go and stuff they need to be built. and they've really shouldn't be looked at like numbers they should be looked at like people if they go to a veteran center for health issues be considered as someone who really needs attention.

among the stories that shape their week the u.k. plunges into political chaos with the prime minister's bragg's it deal suffering the fate of trees and made.