French President Emmanuel Macron and Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh. (Source: MONSTAME)

At the invitation of Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh, French President Emmanuel Macron paid a state visit to Mongolia from May 21-22. Macron's visit became the first by a French President to the country since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1965.

According to the joint statement, the two sides agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in many areas such as defense, economy, agriculture, technology, education, science, culture and sports.

In addition, the statement stressed that Mongolia and France will exchange high-level visits, hold political consultations and support active relations between inter-parliamentary friendship groups between the two countries.

While discussing upgrading bilateral relations and cooperation between the two countries to a Strategic Partnership, the two leaders affirmed their joint efforts for global peace and security.

Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh stressed that, according to the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between Mongolia and the European Union, expanding economic cooperation and increasing French investment are two of the main strategic goals of Mongolia's foreign policy.

Within the framework of implementing commitments under the Paris Agreement on combating climate change, the two sides agreed to cooperate in the fields of renewable energy and nuclear energy.

The parties agreed to cooperate by coordinating Mongolia's national “Billion Trees” movement and French initiatives launched during the One Forest Summit.

France affirmed its support for holding the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Ulaanbaatar in 2026.

The two leaders emphasized that the Joint Statement has historical significance, bringing the relationship between the two countries to a new height.