Mongolia–United States relations

Early relations Several American travelers and traders visited Mongolia in the 19th century, then under Qing rule. The earliest example is dated to 1862, when an American and French traveler were given a travel pass permitting them to transit Mongolia. Travelers included the journalist Thomas W. Knox, diplomat William Woodville Rockhill, as well as the then-engineer and future president Herbert Hoover, the latter of which met the future Bogd Khan in about 1899. The amount of Americans traveling to Urga (modern day Ulaanbaatar) became so frequent in the early 20th century that an area in the city with a number of American businesses became known as the American Denj (denj referring to a hill) After Mongolia declared independence in 1911, the new government headed by the Bogd Khan sent letters of independence containing requests for recognition to a number of consulates stationed in Harbin, including that of the United States, addressing them as the Great Mei (). While the United States did not recognize Mongolia's independence at this time, it did open a consulate in Kalgan, Inner Mongolia (now Zhangjiakou), partially to promote the interests of Americans in Inner and Outer Mongolia. The consulate was housed in a building leased from Frans August Larson, and opened on 1 April 1921, the same year of the communist revolution of 1921. The first consul appointed to Kalgan, Samuel Sokobin, visited Ulaanbaatar and met with prime minister Dogsomyn Bodoo several times, who wrote an article for The Nation magazine in November 1921. Another prime minister with ties to the United States was Soliin Danzan, who represented the "American-Mongolian automobile company". The explorer Roy Chapman Andrews mounted a series of expeditions to Mongolia from 1922–1930. By the late 1920s, however, Mongolia had fallen firmly under the Soviet orbit and hopes for expanded relations were dashed. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld visited in October 2005 and Speaker of the House of Representatives Dennis Hastert visited Mongolia in August 2005. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns led a presidential delegation in July 2006 in conjunction with Mongolia's celebration of its 800th anniversary. President Enkhbayar visited the White House in October 2007 and the two Presidents signed the Millennium Challenge Compact for Mongolia. meets with Mongolian President Khaltmaagiin Battulga meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in July 2019. In July 2004, the U.S. signed a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement with Mongolia to promote economic reform and more foreign investment. In July 2007, six members of the U.S. House of Representatives visited Mongolia to inaugurate an exchange program between lawmakers of the two countries. The return visit came in August 2007, with five members of the Mongolian Parliament traveling to the U.S. In September 2007, the White House announced the proposed creation of an Asia-Pacific Democracy Partnership, in which Mongolia was invited to take part. The initiative is aimed at providing a venue in which free nations can work together to support democratic values, strengthen democratic institutions, and assist those who are working to build and sustain free societies. In August 2011, on a side trip while traveling to China and Japan, Joe Biden made the first visit by a sitting vice president to Mongolia since 1944. In July 2019 the two countries declared a Strategic Partnership during President Khaltmaagiin Battulga's meeting with President Donald Trump. During the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2020 the U.S. government provided 1.2 million USD in aid through USAID, the WHO, and UNICEF to support the Mongolian government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mongolia delivered 60,000 pieces of personal protective equipment to the Navajo Nation in 2020, this becoming the first non-stop flight between the two countries. In early 2021, it was found in a declassified secret document that Mongolia holds a strategic importance to the US in advancing the Indo-Pacific region. In February 2023 the two countries signed an Open Skies Agreement in early 2023 paving the way for non-stop flights. High level visits ==Development assistance==

in Ulaanbaatar The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) plays a leading role in providing bilateral development assistance to Mongolia, focusing on economic growth and good governance. Total USAID grant funding to Mongolia from 1991 through 2011 was about $220 million. By the end of the compact in September 2013, the Government of Mongolia and MCC had spent 94 percent of the anticipated compact funds to increase land security, reduce impacts of non-communicable diseases and injuries, provide enhanced vocational training, expand distribution of energy-efficient household products, and construct roads for commercial traffic. The Government of Mongolia and MCC expect more than 2 million people to benefit from the investments over the 20-year lifetime of the investment. In December 2014, the MCC Board of Directors selected Mongolia for the development of a second compact. Currently, MCC and Mongolian officials are conducting an analysis of the country's economy and constraints to growth. ==Defense==

and Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene at a bilateral exchange at The Pentagon, 2023 Mongolia contributed personnel to the U.S.-led Iraq War as part of Multi-National Force – Iraq in 2003 and has contributed to NATO-led operations in Kosovo from 2005–2007 and the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan from 2009-2014. Mongolia was recognized as a NATO global partner in 2012. The two countries jointly participate in two annual military exercises hosted in Mongolia, Khaan Quest and Gobi Wolf. Khaan Quest, the Asian region's premier peacekeeping exercise, initially started in May 2023 as a bilateral exercise between the United States Marine Corps and Mongolian Armed Forces, and became a multinational exercise starting 2006. Gobi Wolf focuses on domestic disaster preparedness, and was launched in March 2009. ==Migration==

Some immigrants came from Mongolia to the United States as early as 1949, spurred by religious persecution in their homeland. The 2020 Mongolian National Census reported 19,170 Mongolian citizens as residing in the United States, while the Pew Research Center estimated 27,000 people of Mongolian ancestry living in the United States in 2019. As of 2014, there were 1,444 international students of Mongolian origin studying in the United States. ==Economic interests==

As of 2022, total bilateral trade between the two countries was $175 million, with U.S. exports totaling 149 million and Mongolian exports totaling $26 million. Accredited by the United States Chamber of Commerce, the American Chamber of Commerce in Mongolia works to promote business ties between the two countries. ==Diplomatic missions==

The current Ambassador to Mongolia is Richard Buangan, who was appointed by then-President Joe Biden on November 17, 2022. The current Ambassador to the United States is Batbayar Ulziidelger, who presented diplomatic credentials on December 1, 2021. Mongolia maintains an embassy in Washington, D.C. and Consulate Generals in San Francisco and Chicago. The United States maintains an embassy in Ulaanbaatar. File:US Embassy in Mongolia.jpg|Embassy of the United States, Ulaanbaatar File:Embassy of Mongolia, Washington, D.C..jpg|Embassy of Mongolia, Washington, D.C. ==See also==