Mongolia not only India's strategic partner but 'spiritual neighbour': Swaraj

Ulaanbaatar [Mongolia] Apr 25 (ANI): Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday said that Mongolia is not only India's "strategic partner" but also a "spiritual neighbour" because of the common Buddhist heritage.

Heading the 6th Joint Committee for Cooperation, Swaraj said, "Mongolia is well known in India for the valour of her kings and her strong Buddist heritage".

Owing to the common Buddhist heritage shared by the two countries, Swaraj said that the Indian government encourages "students from Mongolia to visit India for further study and research in the field of Buddhist studies."

The minister also shared in her speech that she will attend a birth centenary of a 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche who happened to India's ambassador to Mongolia.

Further, in her speech, she mentioned that both she and Mongolian Foreign Minister Damdin Tsogtbaatar are committed for capacity building programmes for the people of Mongolia specifically in the areas of English language training and Information Technology.

Thwarting terrorism was also one of the most important highlights of the joint summit.

Both the foreign ministers also held discussions for economic cooperation in areas including infrastructure development, energy, services and Information Technology.

In her speech, she highlighted the collaborative projects including the on-going refinery projects in Mongolia. India had provided one billion dollar Indian Line of Credit for the construction of the oil refinery in the mineral and oil-rich country Mongolia.

The two foreign ministers also inked several bilateral agreements. (ANI)