FM HOLDS NEGOTIATIONS IN JAPAN

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia /MONTSAME/ The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia L.Bold held on Tuesday negotiations with his Japanese counterpart Mr Koichiro Genba. Introducing the Japanese side to the foreign policy goals of the new cabinet, Mr Bold affirmed that developing of the relations and cooperation with Japan in accordance with strategic partnership principle is one of the priorities of Mongolia's foreign policy. He noted that the cabinet for the reforms intends to refine upon the legal basis of the bilateral relations and to widen of the mutually-beneficial economic cooperation. The two dignitaries reached agreements--to expand the youths and children's exchange, to strengthen the cooperation at the international level such as the United Nations, appreciating an importance of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) to be established between the two countries. Moreover, they also agreed to work out a middle-term programme on developing the Mongolia-Japan strategic partnership. After the negotiations, L.Bold met Yukio Edano, the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry; Shinzo Abe, a chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party; Satoshi Morimoto, the Minister of Defense; and H.Watanabe, an Executive Director of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation. The sides discussed issues of widening the bilateral strategic partnership in the politics, defense, economics and business. B.Khuder