Ahead of his visit to Mongolia, which began today, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a written interview to the Mongolian Onoodor newspaper. He noted that in the summer of 1939 the Red Army came to the aid of Mongolia to counter the Japanese invasion. “Over 10,000 Red Army soldiers and commanders sacrificed their lives in that battle for Mongolia’s freedom and independence,” he wrote.
Putin listed several economic and industrial projects in Mongolia which Russia is involved in, “including the construction of the Trans-Mongolian gas pipeline connecting Russia and China, works to modernize and increase the performance of the Ulaanbaatar Railway joint venture, the Rosneft Corporation’s fuel supplies for the fuelling complex at the new Chinggis Khaan international airport, and the renovation of TPP-3 [Ulaanbaatar Thermal Power Plant-3, a 448 MW coal-fired power project].” He added that Russia is providing “assistance in meeting the growing needs for fuel and lubricants at preferential prices,” and that there are 620 state-funded places for Mongolian students at Russian universities.
