Mongolia's pro-American prime minister steps down! According to domestic media reports on June 3, Mongolian State Great Khural (parliament) Chairman Amartuvshin stated that because the State Great Khural did not pass the draft resolution of the prime minister's confidence vote on that day, Prime Minister Oyun Erdene was considered to have resigned. Relevant information shows that Oyun Erdene has been the Prime Minister of Mongolia since January 2021 and was re-elected in July 2024. That is to say, less than a year after being re-elected, Oyun Erdene had to step down.
Why did Oyun Erdene step down so quickly? There are mainly three reasons. First, the Mongolian economy is sluggish, and the Mongolian economy has been severely affected due to the decline in coal prices and others. Second, allegations of corruption. Previously, there was an incident where Oyun Erdene's son's girlfriend flaunted wealth on social media, sparking public doubt about the source of their family income. Third, the internal political factions in Mongolia are numerous, and the coalition government has developed cracks.
As for Oyun Erdene himself, he is regarded as a pro-American figure in Mongolia. He once studied at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. During his tenure, Oyun Erdene vigorously promoted the "Third Neighbor Policy," intending to balance the influence of China and Russia by courting the United States. In August 2023, during his visit to the U.S., he finalized a rare earth development agreement with the U.S., and due to Oyun Erdene's proactive pro-American stance, then U.S. Secretary of State Blinken visited Mongolia in 2024.
However, actively approaching the U.S. did not bring Mongolia significant economic benefits. The U.S. is only interested in Mongolia's geopolitical position and rare earth resources. Clearly, constrained by geographical location, Oyun Erdene's ideas were good, but China and Russia are very close. And this reality, Mongolia is becoming increasingly aware of it. Troubled by the economy, some positive changes have occurred in Mongolia. First, Mongolia finally agreed to start construction of the second cross-border railway between China and Mongolia. Second, Mongolia signed a currency swap agreement with us. Obviously, getting on the fast track of China's development will lead to better development for Mongolia, and we believe Mongolia will become increasingly aware of this.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1833869654253962/
Disclaimer: This article represents the author's personal views.