Mongolian Prez to visit India to intensify bilateral ties

Mongolian President Khaltmaagiin Battulga will arrive here tomorrow on a visit aimed at intensifying bilateral ties between the two countries.

The Mongolian leader will receive a ceremonial welcome by President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday morning after which he will lay a wreath at the samadhi of Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat, the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

Later, Battulga will meet Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan at Rashtrapati Bhawan followed by a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his residence.

A banquet will be hosted by Kovind in the honour of the visiting leader. Battulga will also participate in an India-Mongolia Business Forum in New Delhi, the ministry said.

The Mongolian President will also meet Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu.

During his stay, Battulga will visit Agra where he is scheduled to attend an event.

He will also be paying a visit to Bodh Gaya before leaving for Karnataka where he will be hold talks with Governor Vajubhai Vala and attend a programme on September 23.

Battulga's visit to India will be the first State visit by a Mongolian President in last 10 years, the ministry said, noting the two sides will hold in-depth discussions on a range of bilateral, regional and global issues.

It also said the two countries would review ongoing cooperation in fields of infrastructure, energy, disaster management, defence, security, culture, and capacity building.

The two countries had reached a strategic partnership in 2015 during the visit of Prime Minister Modi to Mongolia. A number of high-level exchanges have taken place since then and the partnership has seen considerable progress during the last few years.