Category Archives: Politics

Politics During the Current Economic Crisis

There is no political crisis in the sense of any conflict within parliament or between parliament and the president. Nor are there major scandals at the moment. However, there does appear to be a crisis in the sense of the … Continue reading

Posted in Business, Development, Economics, Foreign Investment, Governance, Inflation, Mining, Oyu Tolgoi, Party Politics, Policy, Politics | Tagged | Leave a comment

Anatomy of the Current Economic Crisis

Having spent last week in Ulaanbaatar, it is clear to me that the current crisis is a) more severe than I had thought, and b) more real/less perceived than I had thought. Below, I try to list elements in this … Continue reading

Posted in Business, China, Corruption, Development, Economics, Foreign Investment, Governance, Inflation, JD Mining Governance, Mining, Oyu Tolgoi, Policy, Politics | Tagged | 3 Comments

Mongolia Buffeted by Global Winds

[For another version of  observations of the current situation in Mongolia, see my piece in the Wall Street Journal Asia on September 13. This piece has been  posted on the World Economic Forum blog as well.] For most of the … Continue reading

Posted in Democracy, Development, Foreign Investment, Governance, JD Mining Governance, Mining, Oyu Tolgoi, Policy | Tagged | Leave a comment

UBC Job in Asian Public Policy

The Institute of Asian Research is hiring an assistant professor (tenure-track) in Asian Public Policy. I would personally be thrilled to see applications of junior scholars who focus some or all of their work on Mongolia. Here’s the job ad: … Continue reading

Posted in Politics, Research on Mongolia | Tagged | Leave a comment

Review of “Mongolia’s State Policy on the Minerals Sector (2013-2024)”

“State Policy on the Minerals Sector (2013-2024),” a document defining the policy framework for the Mongolian minerals sector in the next decade is expected to be discussed at the upcoming autumn session of the State Great Khural. President Elbegdorj decided … Continue reading

Posted in Democracy, Development, Governance, Mining, Policy, Sovereign Wealth Fund | Tagged | Leave a comment

A Network Approach to NGO Development: Women’s NGOs in Mongolia

This article presents results of a social network survey of women’s NGOs in Mongolia, which was conducted during the spring of 2010. The main objective of the survey was to understand the structural properties of collaborative interactions among women’s NGOs. … Continue reading

Posted in Civil Society, Democracy, Publications, Research on Mongolia | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Limitations of Mongolian-Kazakhstani Relations

I have recently had an article published on The Diplomat, in which I explore Mongolian-Kazakhstani relations. I argue that despite geographical and cultural proximity, relations between these two post-communist states are limited by three factors: Historical Political Boundaries Kazakhstan’s continued … Continue reading

Posted in Central Asia, International Relations, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and ... | Tagged | Leave a comment

Does Presidential Pardon Bring End to Enkhbayar Saga?

Mongolian President Ts Elbegdorj was narrowly re-elected to a second term in the June 26 presidential election. He is embarking on this second and final term with expectations of personnel continuity and policy stability. He is setting out on this … Continue reading

Posted in Corruption, Democratic Party, Law, Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Politics, Populism | Tagged | Leave a comment

Failed States Index

The Fund for Peace released its 2013 Failed States Index (FSI) earlier in July 2013 and I’ve included the ranking in our Mongolia Scorecard. Methodology The Failed States Index aims to identify ” pressures [that] are pushing a state towards the brink of … Continue reading

Posted in Democracy, Development, Global Indices, Governance, Inequality, JD Democratization, Politics, Population, Security Apparatus, Social Issues, Social Movements | Tagged | Leave a comment

Mongolian Presidential Election Ends in Ruling Democratic Party’s Favor

On July 3, the Mongolian parliament endorsed Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj’s second term as the country’s president, based on the General Election Commission’s report (Press Release of the Mongolian parliament, July 3). The swearing-in ceremony will be organized on July 10, on … Continue reading

Posted in Democracy, Elections, Party Politics, Presidential 2013 | Tagged | Leave a comment

Vote Shares by Regions

Among the data that the General Election Commission has made available quickly is the breakdown by Aimag and Ulaanbaatar ridings. It’s quite clear from a glance that Elbegdorj has won this election on the strength of his showing in the … Continue reading

Posted in Democratic Party, Elections, JD Democratization, Mongolian People's Party, Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Party Politics, Politics, Presidential 2013 | Tagged | 1 Comment

Digesting the Results of the Presidential Election

I will be updating, changing, adding to and deleting from this post continuously this morning (June 27 in Ulaanbaatar) as I sort my thoughts and understanding of the result of the presidential election. At 8:30h it seems like the GEC … Continue reading

Posted in Democratic Party, Elections, JD Democratization, Mongolian People's Party, Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Party Politics, Politics, Presidential 2013 | Tagged | Leave a comment

Investigating the Rural Vote

Over the past weekend, I was very fortunate to have the chance to travel to Khentii Aimag and to speak to a number of locals. I was particularly interested in how the campaign messages of the three candidates played in … Continue reading

Posted in Curios, Presidential 2013 | Tagged | Leave a comment

Presidential Q&A

The general view in Ulaanbaatar was that Bat-Erdene was trailing Elbegdorj significantly in voter support in some part because of his lack of political experience, and profile and the fact that he doesn’t “look presidential”. This latter judgement is not … Continue reading

Posted in Democratic Party, Education, Elections, Foreign Policy, Judiciary, Mining, Mongolian People's Party, Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Party Politics, Presidential 2013, Security Apparatus, Social Issues | Tagged | 2 Comments

Bits and Pieces about the Campaign and Upcoming Vote

Three days remain in the presidential campaign, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. In central Ulaanbaatar, there still is very little of a sense of excitement or at least public drama around the campaign. Certainly, residents of the downtown core are a … Continue reading

Posted in Democratic Party, Elections, Mongolian People's Party, Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Presidential 2013 | Tagged | Leave a comment