Moscow-Ulaanbaatar: Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of International Studies of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences. 2011. 440 p.

The topic of Russian-Mongolian relations has always been and remains important and relevant. Russia and Mongolia are united not only by a common border, but also by many years of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance. The history of these relations is well studied and described in articles and monographs of well-known Mongolian scholars. During the Soviet era, the situation in the neighboring friendly country was periodically covered in the press and on television, many Soviet citizens worked in Mongolia, and Mongols studied in educational institutions of the USSR. However, with the collapse of the socialist system, many of the ties that united the two countries were also cut off, and there was even a certain "cooling" in relations. In the 1990s, both Russia and Mongolia were busy solving their domestic political and economic problems, as well as looking for their place in the international arena. But gradually, relations between the two countries began to recover, visits of top officials began, contracts and agreements were concluded, and cultural and scientific cooperation was being established. Questions arise: at what stage are Russian-Mongolian relations today, what results have been achieved over the past 20 years? Information about this is scattered through newspaper and magazine publications, a few analytical articles, collections of documents, etc. All this suggests that the publication of a comprehensive monograph on Russian-Mongolian relations after 1990 has long been a necessity. Joint work of a team of leading Russian Mongolian scholars from the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences (V. V. Graivoronsky, G. S. Yaskina, M. I. Golman, Sh. G. Nadirov, E. V. Boikova, M. B. Meshchaninov) and scientists from the Institute of International Studies of the Academy of Sciences of Mongolia (L. Haisandai, O. Batsaykhan, S. Damdinsuren, D. Shurkhuu, K. Demberal, A. Buyantogs, L. Oyungerel, A. Nyamdolzhin, J. Orkhon) fully fills this gap.

The book consists of four sections, each of which covers one or more main areas of Russian-Mongolian cooperation. The first section is devoted to changes in political relations between the two countries after 1990. The authors show how perestroika in the USSR, the emergence of the democratic movement in Mongolia, and subsequent events led to a certain cooling and significant reduction of bilateral contacts in the early 1990s. multi-vector and more pragmatic approach. Mongolia has gone from being a buffer state between Russia and China to a full-fledged and active participant in international relations, building an independent foreign policy. In this situation, Russia was forced to reconsider its previous policy and act more carefully, taking into account Mongolian interests.

The monograph pays great attention to the new legal framework of relations between Mongolia and Russia, examines the treaties and agreements signed by the leaders of the two countries over the past two decades, primarily the Interstate Treaty on Friendly Relations and Cooperation (1993), the Ulaanbaatar (2000) and Moscow (2006) declarations, as well as the Declaration on the Development of Relations between Mongolia and Russia. strategic Partnership between Russia and Mongolia (2009). The main attention is paid to the structure and main areas of work of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation (IPC), established in 1991, as well as direct bilateral contacts between government bodies, diplomatic institutions and other organizations.

The second section is devoted to trade and economic cooperation between the two countries, which occupies a central place in the entire complex of Russian-Mongolian relations. There have also been dramatic changes in this area: before the collapse of the socialist system, the Soviet Union was Mongolia's main economic partner, accounting for more than 80% of the country's total foreign trade turnover. However, in the early 1990s, the previous system of bilateral trade and economic relations collapsed, as a result of which Mongolia's economy was in an extremely difficult situation, and Russia lost its dominant position in the country. The authors of the monograph review the periodization of the history of trade and economic relations between Russia and Mongolia that has developed in historiography. Instead of three stages-1) the period of recession (1990-1995), 2) the period of stagnation (1995-1999), and 3) the new period (2000-present), they propose to distinguish two stages: 1) 1990-1999, a period of decline, sharp decline in mutual trade and investment; 2) since 2000. To date, the stage of significant activation of Russian-Mongolian relations, the formation and improvement of a new mechanism of interaction in the face of increased competition from other major countries (China, the United States, Japan, the Republic of Korea, etc.) (p. 87).

The authors draw attention to the unbalanced nature of trade between the two countries and the fact that the imbalance continues to grow at a high rate. They also write about changes in the structure of Russian exports to Mongolia. Whereas before the USSR exported mostly machinery, equipment, electrical appliances and vehicles, by now Russia has lost its previous positions and has been largely displaced from the Mongolian market by other countries. Today, Russia is leading mainly as a supplier of petroleum products and electricity, while other areas are actively developed by foreign companies. The authors also pay attention to the problem of Mongolia's "big debt" and its settlement on exceptionally favorable terms for Mongolia. This step by Russia has created new favorable opportunities for boosting trade and economic ties.

The authors distinguish two groups of factors that affect the relations between the two countries in the sphere of trade and economy. Among the positive ones are the long-standing traditions of friendship and cooperation, the 3.5 thousand km long common border, the complementary nature and level of economic development, the high level of political relations, etc. Both Russia and Mongolia are interested in maintaining friendly relations and strategic partnership. Mongols are attracted to the huge Russian market, especially in the border regions of Siberia and Transbaikalia, where they can sell traditional Mongolian goods (meat, cashmere, leather and sheepskin products). In general, the noticeable predominance of regional and cross-border ties (over 70% of the total trade turnover) is an important feature of the current stage of bilateral economic relations. In turn, Russian companies are interested in developing large mineral deposits in Mongolia and participating in other projects.

Negative factors include the underdeveloped economy of Mongolia, a limited range of Mongolian export goods, a relatively small domestic market, and poor infrastructure. The authors also note bureaucratization and corruption in both countries, the problem of high customs duties and tariffs for the transit of Mongolian cargo through Russia, which hinder the growth of trade turnover (p. 102).

It is known that in the total volume of foreign investment in the economy of Mongolia in 1990-2010, Russia's share is very small-only 3%. However, according to the authors, this calculation does not take into account the huge contribution of the USSR to the economy of Mongolia before 1990, as well as the solution of the problem of "big debt", which was also a kind of investment. It's hard to disagree. The authors believe that the existing estimates of the real place and role of Russia in the Mongolian economy need to be significantly adjusted (pp. 107-108).

The authors of the monograph also touched upon such important topics as investments and joint ventures. Here, the authors cover the situation around KOO "Enterprise Erdenet", KOO "Mongolrostsvetmet", JSC "Ulaanbaatar Railway" and other enterprises. They also pay attention to such topical issues as the prospects for Russia's participation in the development of large deposits of coal (Tavan-Tolgoi), uranium (Dornod) and other minerals, in the construction of new railways, etc. At the same time, the authors quite rightly point out that Russia's participation in many important projects on the territory of Mongolia is largely declarative in nature, and Russian companies are in no hurry to use the benefits.-

pleasant opportunities, which are becoming less and less every day. At the same time, the Mongolian side does not always fulfill the agreements reached.

The monograph analyzes for the first time the policy of Mongolia on the creation of free economic and trade zones - Altanbulak, Zamyn-Ud, Tsagannur. This is a new direction of strategic partnership between the two countries.

The third section of the monograph is devoted to cooperation in the field of culture, education and science. The authors review the contractual and legal framework of cooperation, write about joint work in the field of culture, theater and fine arts, music, cinematography, the resumption of the tradition of mutual cultural days, the activities of friendship societies, and the spread of the Russian language in Mongolia.

The issues of scientific cooperation between the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Mongolian Academy of Sciences, as well as the appearance of joint scientific competitions organized by the Russian Foundation for Science and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of Mongolia are covered in some detail. The authors also pay attention to the issue of information exchange. Anyone interested in Mongolia knows that the lack of comprehensive information about events in Mongolia is a serious problem. The authors conclude that without state support, primarily financial, the development of relations in the field of culture, science and information exchange is not dynamic enough.

Cooperation in the field of education is given a separate chapter, which deals with the issues of training Mongolian students in Russia under an intergovernmental agreement, the activities of branches of a number of Russian universities in Mongolia, the development of joint projects in the field of school education, etc. The authors paid much attention to the analysis of the situation with the spread and study of the Russian language in Mongolia.

The fourth section is devoted to cooperation in the international arena. Here, the authors consider new approaches of Mongolia and Russia to global and regional problems, the participation of Russia and Mongolia in integration processes in East Asia, as well as current problems of Mongolia's national security in the context of Mongolian-Russian relations. Cooperation between the two countries in the UN, UNESCO and other international organizations, relations with the ADB, WB, IMF, etc. was positively assessed.

Attention is paid to the strategic partnership between the two countries in strengthening peace and security in Northeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region as a whole. Such an important issue as cooperation between Russia, Mongolia and China has not been ignored. The article analyzes the reasons for the success of Chinese policy in Mongolia and how it affects Russia's interests.

The authors managed to convincingly show that both countries are active participants in the integration processes in Asia. Russia supports Mongolia's involvement in APEC, major transport and energy projects. Mongolia, in turn, supports Russian initiatives to strengthen regional security. Of course, cooperation in these areas does not always go as well as we would like, despite the significant potential. This is due to the economic situation in both countries, as well as the difference in national interests and approaches to certain issues. Nevertheless, according to the authors of the book, the strategic goals of the two countries coincide, so the prospects for cooperation between Russia and Mongolia in the international arena are favorable.

Russia and Mongolia are now at the beginning of a process where the fundamental foundations of cooperation are being laid for the foreseeable future and the first very significant results have emerged. The two countries ' long-term interests and approaches to key issues of modern politics and economy largely coincide. Strategic cooperation between Russia and Mongolia is currently at the stage of forming its main directions. Countries have to take into account different levels of development, different scales of territories and populations, economic potentials, different volumes of markets and the results of reforms.

However, as the authors of the collection rightly point out, despite the rapid pace of development of Russian-Mongolian relations, there are still many unresolved problems. Among them: the issue of a visa-free regime for mutual travel of citizens, the problem of high tariffs and duties on traditional goods of Mongolian export to Russia, complex customs procedures, trade imbalance, etc.

I would also like to note that the authors ' team considers the current stage of relations between Mongolia and Russia not in isolation, but in the context of the history of Soviet/Russian-Mongolian relations, emphasizing the importance of historical continuity and using the best and effective practices of the past decades. It is impossible not to agree that

the experience of bilateral cooperation between the USSR and the MNR, with all its shortcomings, had many positive aspects, which it makes no sense to abandon.

In addition to the main part of the monograph, there are also very valuable appendices, including a list of documents on Russian-Mongolian relations in 1991-2009, a chronology of Russian-Mongolian relations (1990-2010), and personal and geographical indexes.

In general, it seems that the authors successfully coped with the task. However, I would like to draw your attention to the following points. There are repetitions in the book, probably due to the fact that Russian and Mongolian authors worked on different chapters and sections. It is quite logical that each of them writes about the situation in Russian-Mongolian relations in the early 1990s, mentions such important events as the visits of Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Medvedev and other statesmen to Mongolia and, accordingly, Mongolian leaders to Russia, and the signing of fundamental documents (Moscow, Ulaanbaatar declarations, etc.), etc. As a result, the reader, after reading about it in one chapter or section, is forced to read approximately the same thing again in the next chapter or section. This could have been avoided by more careful editing of the monograph. Secondly, despite the fact that the authors mention the problems of Russian-Mongolian relations at the present stage (about the insufficient degree of Russia's participation in the Mongolian economy, the largely declarative nature of Russian policy towards Mongolia, etc.In my opinion, the book pays little attention to the analysis of these problems and their causes. Of course, it is important to write about what has already been done and is being done. But in the conditions when Russia was actually forced out of the Mongolian market, when the Mongolian President Ts. Elbegdorj claims that Mongolia would like to get the status of a partner in NATO, etc., but just stating the facts is not enough. Detailed coverage and analysis of the reasons for such failures in Russian foreign policy and Russian-Mongolian relations in general are needed. This would make the book even more relevant and topical. It seems that further development of the topic of cooperation between Russia and Mongolia should be devoted to this aspect of bilateral relations.

Nevertheless, it should be recognized that today the reviewed monograph is the most complete, adequate and versatile study of Russian-Mongolian relations since 1990. Given that this book is a joint project of scientists from Russia and Mongolia, it can be said that it itself serves as an excellent example of Russian-Mongolian scientific cooperation at the present stage.

Постоянный адрес данной публикации: