[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 36 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. RES. 36
Reaffirming the strategic partnership between the United States and
Mongolia and recognizing the 30th anniversary of democracy in Mongolia.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 8, 2021
Mr. Sullivan (for himself and Mr. Cardin) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Reaffirming the strategic partnership between the United States and
Mongolia and recognizing the 30th anniversary of democracy in Mongolia.
Whereas the United States and Mongolia established diplomatic relations in
January 1987, and since that time the relationship has grown stronger
based on shared strategic interests, security cooperation, democratic
values, good governance, and respect for human rights;
Whereas, since its peaceful democratic revolution in 1989, through a series of
initiatives, Mongolia has charted a successful path to multiparty
democracy and a free market economy;
Whereas, in 1990, the Government of Mongolia declared an end to a one-party and
authoritarian political system and adopted democratic and free market
reforms;
Whereas, in 1992, Mongolia adopted a constitution establishing a democracy,
becoming the first country in Asia to transition from communism to
democracy;
Whereas Mongolia has shown its commitment to a ``third neighbor'' relationship
with the United States by sending troops to support United States
operations in Iraq from 2003 through 2008 and Afghanistan since 2009,
and Mongolia has a strong record of troop contributions to international
peacekeeping missions;
Whereas successive Mongolian governments have taken notable steps to strengthen
civil society, battle corruption, and spur economic development;
Whereas the Parliament of Mongolia, the State Great Khural, has engaged with
Congress, including through the House Democracy Partnership, thereby
promoting responsive and effective governance through peer-to-peer
cooperation;
Whereas Mongolia began as a partner to the Organization for Security and Co-
operation in Europe (OSCE) in 2004, graduated to become a participating
state in 2012, and participates actively in the work of the OSCE for
stability, peace, and democracy;
Whereas Mongolia has regularly invited the OSCE and other organizations to send
monitoring teams for its presidential and parliamentary elections;
Whereas Mongolia has also been an active member of the Community of Democracies
(CoD), a global coalition of states that support adherence to common
democratic values and standards, and Mongolia has not only remained
active since the founding of the CoD in 2000, but successfully chaired
the CoD from 2011 through 2013;
Whereas, in addition to supporting the OSCE and the CoD, Mongolia supports
democratic initiatives while participating in a wide range of other
global institutions;
Whereas, most recently, on June 24, 2020, Mongolia successfully organized
parliamentary elections, strengthening its commitment to democracy and
the rule of law;
Whereas the success of Mongolia as a democracy and its strategic location,
sovereignty, territorial integrity, and ability to pursue an independent
foreign policy are important to the national security of the United
States;
Whereas the United States has provided support to Mongolia through the
Millennium Challenge Corporation through an initial compact signed in
2007 designed to increase economic growth and reduce poverty and a
second compact signed in 2018 involving investments in water
infrastructure, including supply and wastewater recycling, as well as
water sector sustainability;
Whereas, on September 20, 2018, the United States and Mongolia released a joint
statement and the ``Roadmap for Expanded Economic Partnership between
the United States and Mongolia,'' outlining the intent to deepen the
bilateral commercial relationship, including through full implementation
of the obligations under the Agreement on Transparency in Matters
Related to International Trade and Investment between the United States
of America and Mongolia, signed at New York September 24, 2013 (in this
preamble referred to as the ``United States-Mongolia Transparency
Agreement''), and collaboration in supporting Mongolian small- and
medium-sized enterprises through various programs and projects;
Whereas, according to the Bureau of the Census, trade between the United States
and Mongolia is modest but growing, with total trade in 2019 between the
two countries of approximately $217,400,000, including $192,800,000 in
United States exports to Mongolia and $24,600,000 in United States
imports from Mongolia;
Whereas Mongolia is a beneficiary country under the Generalized System of
Preferences program, but its use of the program remains low, as, in
2018, only $3,200,000 of exports from Mongolia to the United States were
under the program; and
Whereas, on July 31, 2019, the United States and Mongolia declared the bilateral
relationship a Strategic Partnership and noted the shared desire--
(1) to intensify cooperation as strong democracies based on the rule of
law through safeguarding and promoting democratic values and human rights,
including the freedoms of religion or belief, expression, including
internet and media freedom, assembly, and association, anticorruption and
fiscal transparency, and youth and emerging leader development;
(2) to cooperate in promoting national security and stability across
the Indo-Pacific region so that all countries, secure in their sovereignty,
are able to pursue economic growth consistent with international law and
principles of fair competition;
(3) to deepen national security and law-enforcement ties through
collaboration on bilateral and multilateral security, judicial, and law-
enforcement efforts in the region;
(4) to strengthen cooperation in multilateral engagements such as
peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance, and disaster preparedness and relief
operations;
(5) to expand trade and investment relations on a fair and reciprocal
basis, support private sector-led growth, fully implement the United
States-Mongolia Transparency Agreement, promote women's entrepreneurship,
and continue to explore support for infrastructure under the new United
States International Development Finance Corporation with the new tools
provided under the BUILD Act of 2018 (22 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.);
(6) to strengthen border security, prevent illegal transshipment and
trafficking, expand cooperation on civil aviation safety and oversight, and
efficiently facilitate legitimate travel between Mongolia and the United
States;
(7) to increase cooperation in addressing transnational threats such as
terrorism, human trafficking, drug trafficking, the proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction, cyberattacks, transnational organized crime,
pandemics, and other emerging nontraditional security threats;
(8) to continue to develop an environment in which civil society,
social media, and a free and independent media can flourish; and
(9) to maintain high-level official dialogues, encourage bilateral
exchanges at all levels of government, and further develop people-to-people
exchanges to deepen engagement on issues of mutual interest and concern:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) recognizes the importance of the relationship between
the United States and Mongolia and remains committed to
advancing this Strategic Partnership in the future;
(2) emphasizes the importance of free and fair elections in
Mongolia;
(3) applauds the continued engagement of Mongolia in the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the
Community of Democracies, congressional-parliamentary
partnerships, including continued high-level parliamentary
exchange, and other institutions that promote democratic
values, which reinforces the commitment of the people and the
Government of Mongolia to those values and standards;
(4) encourages the United States Government to help
Mongolia use its benefits under the Generalized System of
Preferences program and other relevant programs to increase
trade between the United States and Mongolia;
(5) urges the United States International Development
Finance Corporation to expand activities in Mongolia to support
economic development, diversification of the economy of
Mongolia, and women-owned small- and medium-sized enterprises;
(6) urges private and public support to help diversify the
economy of Mongolia through increased cooperation and
investments, as well as infrastructure and other vital
projects;
(7) urges the Department of State, the United States Agency
for International Development, and other relevant agencies to
continue to support Mongolia's democratic and economic
development and efforts on anticorruption;
(8) reaffirms the importance of civil society to the
continued democratic development of Mongolia;
(9) encourages the Government of Mongolia to build a
regulatory system that supports and encourages the growth and
operation of independent nongovernmental organizations and
continues to pursue policies of transparency that uphold
democratic values; and
(10) encourages the Government of Mongolia to continue
legal reform, institutional capacity building, and to improve
the independence of other democratic institutions.
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