India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar recently concluded his East Asia tour, which included Mongolia. The official visit emphasized Mongolia and India’s strategic partnership, growing bilateral economic engagements, and marked political will from both sides to bolster cooperation, displaying a deeper connectivity between Eurasia and the Indo-Pacific.
Jaishankar’s official visit to Mongolia, from June 22 to 23, was part of the 10-year strategic roadmap established in 2025 during Mongolian President Khurelsukh Ukhnaa’s state visit to New Delhi.
During Jaishankar’s visit to Ulaanbaatar, he met with Khurelsukh, Foreign Minister Battsetseg Batmunkh, and other senior government officials to strengthen bilateral cooperation in several areas, particularly, mining, technology, and human resources.
On June 22, Jaishankar visited the flagship Mongol Oil Refinery in Dornigovi Province. India is currently constructing Mongolia’s first-ever greenfield oil refinery in Dornigovi. The project is financed by a $1.7 billion line of credit. When completed, the Mongol Refinery will be the second largest major foreign investment project after Rio Tinto’s Oyu Tolgoi and has potential to change Mongolia’s energy sector.
Importantly, the oil refinery is one of the largest investments being financed by Mongolia’s third neighbors outside of the mining sector. The successful completion and operation of the refinery will serve as a major source of diversification for Mongolia’s limited market. Hence, the completion of the project is highly anticipated by both Mongolia and India.
However, mining remains an important focus of Mongolia’s economic strategy – and India is also a possible third destination for Mongolia’s coking coal industry. Given India’s increasing need of coal for its technological advancement and steel industry, Jaishankar expressed interest in exploring logistical opportunities for Mongolia to export coking coal and other mining products to India.
In addition to economic engagements, Mongolia and India both employ soft power mechanisms in navigating international and regional affairs. Cultural diplomacy, religious links, and education have become the pillars of India-Mongolia cultural diplomacy.
During Khurelsukh’s state visit to India in 2025, the two countries agreed to digitize 1 million ancient Buddhist manuscripts housed in Mongolia’s Gandantegchinlen Monastery, which Jaishankar personally visited during his official visit.
After his visit to the monastery, Jaishankar called it “a symbol of the special and spiritual bond between India and Mongolia.” He added that he was “delighted to witness the partnership project for digitization of one million Buddhist manuscripts in action.”
India’s technological innovation and digital transformation have been an inspiration to Mongolia’s own ambition to become a digital nation. India and Mongolia have deepened their digital and technological cooperation by signing several memoranda of understanding (MoUs) in cybersecurity, IT, communications, and digital education.
Jaishankar’s official visit to Mongolia highlighted several important foreign policy development for both India and Mongolia.
For India, East Asia has become increasingly important for technology, trade, supply chain resilience, and soft power. This creates a new window of opportunity for Ulaanbaatar’s landlocked economic environment. Moreover, India and Mongolia’s non-bloc approach aligns with their economic and growth strategies.
Just days before Jaishankar’s official visit, Mongolia hosted Khaan Quest, the annual multinational peacekeeping drill where India has been an active participant since 2006. Mongolia, too, takes part in India’s Nomadic Elephant military exercise, which develops counterterrorism capacity. To elevate Mongolia and India’s defense relations, in 2025, New Delhi established a defense attaché in Ulaanbaatar.
At the leadership level, Mongolia and India both demonstrate the political will to bolster cooperation mechanisms. The chair of Mongolia’s State Great Khural, Byambatsogt Sandag, received Jaishankar to strengthen cooperation in governance and legislative matters.
The Foreign Ministry of Mongolia summed up Jaishankar’s stay: “This visit is of great significance in strengthening the ‘Strategic Partnership’ between the two countries, enriching trade and economic cooperation with new ideas and links, and determining the direction of future cooperation.” As Mongolia continues to seek investments from third neighbors, India will be an increasingly important partner to Ulaanbaatar. Mongolia, too, has become an important partner in New Delhi’s Act East Policy.
Now the hope is for Mongolia to have stable governments that can successfully implement large projects that are crucial for the country’s development – like the India-backed oil refinery.
