MOSCOW, September 18. /TASS/. Moscow considers the development of relations with Ulaanbaatar one of the priorities of its foreign policy in Asia, Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolay Patrushev said at a meeting with his Mongolian counterpart Jadambyn Enkhbayar.
"We consider cooperation with Mongolia as one of the priorities of Russia's foreign policy in the Asian direction," he said.
Patrushev noted that in 1921 the Soviet Union was the first in the world to recognize Mongolia's sovereignty and for many decades remained "the only guarantor of its security in the world arena." He also pointed out that during the critical period for Mongolia in the summer of 1939, the USSR "immediately responded to the request of the Mongolian government to come to the aid in repelling the aggression on the Khalkhin-Gol River" (Japanese troops invaded the territory of the republic).
More than 10,000 soldiers and commanders of the Red Army gave their lives in the battle for the freedom and independence of Mongolia, the official stressed. Next year, the two countries will solemnly celebrate the 85th anniversary of the joint victory, he added.
"On the battlefields, Russian and Mongolian volunteers continue to search for and bury the remains of heroes, who gave their lives in the fight against the Nazis. Amid the campaign unleashed by the collective West to falsify history and revise the outcome of World War II, such work is especially important. We trust that the Mongolian authorities will continue to provide assistance to Russian search teams," Patrushev emphasized.