The Norway-Mongolia Bilateral Relationship

The Norwegian Ambassador to Mongolia, Svein O. Sæther, performed the official opening. Present at the ceremony were representatives of Mongolian authorities, parliamentarians, the resident diplomatic corps, and the local Norwegian community.

Norway and Mongolia established diplomatic relations in 1968. The 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations was marked in 2008 by the visit to Mongolia by H.R.H. Crown Prince Haakon, in his capacity as UNDP Goodwill Ambassador.The Royal Norwegian Consulate General in Mongolia

During the opening of the Honorary Consulate General in Ulaanbaatar, Ambassador Sæther emphasized that the establishment of an Honorary Consulate General in Mongolia will bring our two countries closer. The opening of the Mongolian Embassy to Norway in Stockholm will also further facilitate the development of bilateral contacts. Ms. Luvsanvandan Sarangerel, the Honorary Consul General of Norway in Mongolia, expressed that as Mongolia today stands at a crossroads in its own development, it could learn a lot to learn from the Norwegian development experience. The Honorary Consulate General is located at the SOS Medica Mongolia in Ulaanbaatar.

Bilateral Visits

Several parliamentarians from Norway have visited Mongolia in the past years, including former Presidents of the Norwegian Parliament (the Storting), Mr. Jørgen Kosmo in 2004, and Ms. Kirsti Kolle Grøndahl in 1999. Mr. Carl I. Hagen, then Vice President of the Storting represented Norway during Mongolia’s 800 years’ anniversary in 2006. In 2007, Auditor General Jørgen Kosmo visited the country in 2007 in connection with a bilateral cooperation project between the two countries’ Auditor Generals’ Office.

During a visit to Norway in 2007, Foreign Minister of Mongolia Mr. Nyamaa Enkhbold had meetings with the Norwegian Minister of International Development, Mr. Erik Solheim. The Minister of Justice of Mongolia, Mr. Tsend Nyamdorj visited Norway in spring, and then had meetings with his Norwegian counterpart, Mr. Knut Storberget.

Cultural Cooperation

During an Embassy visit to Mongolia in November 2010, Ambassador Sæther signed two cooperation agreements with the Arts Council of Mongolia, ACM. The two cultural programmes; “Young Leadership in the Arts” and the “Arts Network” TV programme. Several Norwegian musicians have played at the annual Giant Steppes Jazz Festival in Mongolia. The popular band Hanggai from China and Mongolia has also become friends of Norway. The band, specializing in Mongolian folk music, played at the Oslo World Music Festival in 2010.

Norwegians in Mongolia

More than 40 Norwegians live in Mongolia today. Several of them have close relations to the Norwegian Lutheran Mission (NLM). NLM has been present in Mongolia for almost 15 years, and works on a range of development cooperation projects.

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