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- 2026 Budget Proposal: With Failing Infrastructure, Can Mongolia Pivot From Coal to Copper?
- On Egg Cartons In Mongolia
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- Guest Post: Back in Mongolia: Buzz, Ambition, and a Bold Vision at MEF 2025
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Category Archives: Research on Mongolia
Political Predictions and Why I Struggle with Making Them
By Julian Dierkes People expect political predictions from me as a longtime Mongolia observer and country specialist. Even when I feel relatively certain of some predictions I would make, there is always that nagging doubt that strange things might happen … Continue reading
Posted in Constitution, Democracy, Ikh Khural 2024, Law, Politics, Reflection, Research on Mongolia
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Aspirational Statements as Legislation
By Julian Dierkes With the “Protecting Human Rights on Social Media Law” we have seen another round of what seems like fairly misguided legislation. Tegshbayar has already questioned the need for an expedited process and other aspects for this law. … Continue reading
Posted in Democracy, Governance, JD Democratization, Judiciary, Law, Media and Press, Politics, Protest, Social Media
Tagged Julian Dierkes
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Summer 2023 Mongolia Field School
Interested in educational travel to Mongolia this summer? Join our informational webinar about the ACMS Mongolia Field School 2023, with the International and Mongolian instructors who will be teaching the courses in summer 2023. We will hold the webinar January … Continue reading
December 2022 Protests
By Julian Dierkes Once again, following protests in April 2022, primarily younger Mongolians took to Sukhbaatar Square in protest in early December. I initially wrote about these protests for The Diplomat, pointing out the simmering corruption worries connected to state-owned … Continue reading
Posted in China, Corruption, Erdenes Mongol, JD Democratization, Mining, Mining Governance, Politics, Protest, Protest, Tavan Tolgoi, Younger Mongolians
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State-Socialist Legacies and Selective Perception of Propaganda
By Julian Dierkes Every so often, my conversations, especially on visits to Mongolia which are so valuable for my thinking, touch on bigger issues that are challenging to frame as a blog post. This is one of those attempts to … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Dissertation Ideas, Gender, History, JD Democratization, Policy, Politics, Protest, Protest, Reflection, Social Issues, Social Movements, Society and Culture
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Challenging Supermajority
By Julian Dierkes Following the 2020 parliamentary and 2021 presidential election, there were some fears that the MPP’s electoral wins and occupation of all three highest offices would lead to some kind of one-party domination. Most readers will recall then-Pres … Continue reading
Constitutional Amendments, Again?
By Julian Dierkes It appears that constitutional amendments are in the air again and some claim that these are likely to be addressed in a special parliamentary session in August or early on in the Fall session. These amendments would … Continue reading
Posted in Constitution, Governance, JD Democratization, Law, Politics
Tagged Julian Dierkes
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Considerations on Planning Travel from the US to Mongolia in February 2022
By Marissa J. Smith This past week I have spoken with several people, and participated in several conversations on social media, where an announcement by Prime Minister Oyun-Erdene has been quoted as “borders are open.” I am sharing here a … Continue reading
Guest Post: Creating Value From Mining: Local Procurement, Shared Value and Sustainable Development
By Jocelyn Fraser & Zorigkhuu Bat-Erdene As Mongolia develops its rich mineral resources, tensions can arise between mining companies and local communities. Efforts to expand the economy through the development of mineral resources have therefore raised questions about whether mineral … Continue reading
A Panel Analysis of Current Options for a Renewed Oyu Tolgoi Agreement
By Julian Dierkes Since the Dec 13 announcement of a RioTinto offer to write off government debt, relatively little discussion has followed in the Mongolian public. As I mentioned in a previous post, the MPP response has been almost enthusiastic. … Continue reading
Posted in Erdenes Mongol, Mining, Mining Governance, Oyu Tolgoi, Oyu Tolgoi, Public Opinion, Public Policy, Research on Mongolia, Taxes
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Rio Tinto/Turquoise Hill Offer on Debt Forgiveness for Oyu Tolgoi Stake
By Julian Dierkes On the morning of December 13, PM Oyun-Erdene “unveiled” an offer he received from Rio Tinto/Turquoise Hill that appears to be intended to form the basis for a new agreement to jumpstart underground development at Oyu Tolgoi. … Continue reading
A More Constructive Longterm Interaction Between Rio Tinto and Mongolia
By Julian Dierkes In a previous post, I gave my sense of where the re-negotiations regarding the OT Agreement are heading and how I see this as a step in a repeating cycle. I have also pointed to a quest … Continue reading
Posted in Education, EITI, International Agreements, JD Democratization, Mining, Mining Governance, Oyu Tolgoi, Oyu Tolgoi, Politics, Public Policy
Tagged Julian Dierkes
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Search for (Oyu Tolgoi) Perfection
By Julian Dierkes I have recently shared my perspective on the negotiations of a (new) OT Agreement. Below, I want to highlight one of the aspects that I see as bringing about this cycle, an aspect that is also prevalent … Continue reading
Posted in Democracy, Governance, JD Mining Governance, Mining Governance, Oyu Tolgoi, Party Politics, Politics, Public Policy
Tagged Julian Dierkes
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2021 Oyu Tolgoi Negotiations
By Julian Dierkes How can I resist the following challenge? So what do you think is the key to resolving the OT situation? MPP controls government, so clearly decisions can be taken. What about Rio’s behaviour? Is GOM being unfair? … Continue reading
Fragmented Power
By Julian Dierkes A recent article in The Economist compares political contestation around the Kumtor mine in Kyrgyzstan and Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia. There a number of aspects to that comparison that make it very interesting: Democratization: Kyrgyzstan has – … Continue reading