Page | 1 © DLIFLC Table of Contents Chapter 1: Geography ......................................................................................................... 5 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 5 Geographic Regions and Topographic Features ............................................................. 6 Climate ............................................................................................................................ 7 Rivers and Lakes ............................................................................................................. 9 Rivers .......................................................................................................................... 9 Lakes ......................................................................................................................... 10 Cities ............................................................................................................................. 11 Ulaanbaatar ............................................................................................................... 12 Erdenet ...................................................................................................................... 13 Darhan ....................................................................................................................... 13 Choybalsan ................................................................................................................ 14 Moron ........................................................................................................................ 14 Environmental Concerns ............................................................................................... 15 Natural Hazards ............................................................................................................ 17 Chapter 1: Assessment ...................................................................................................... 19 Chapter 2: History ............................................................................................................. 20 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 20 Pre-Mongol History ...................................................................................................... 20 The Mongol Empires .................................................................................................... 22 Genghis Khan............................................................................................................ 22 Genghis Khan’s Successors ...................................................................................... 23 The Yuan Dynasty .................................................................................................... 25 Post-Imperial Mongolia ................................................................................................ 26 The Oirat-Khalkha Division ..................................................................................... 26 The Qing Dynasty ..................................................................................................... 27 20th-Century Mongolia ................................................................................................. 29 Autonomy and the Struggle for Independence ......................................................... 29 Collectivization and Threats from the East ............................................................... 30 Mongolia and the Sino-Soviet Conflict .................................................................... 31 Mongolia’s Democratic Revolution .......................................................................... 32 Page | 2 © DLIFLC Recent Events............................................................................................................ 33 Chapter 2: Assessment ...................................................................................................... 35 Chapter 3: Economy ......................................................................................................... 36 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 36 Agriculture .................................................................................................................... 36 Livestock ................................................................................................................... 36 Cultivation................................................................................................................. 37 Forestry ..................................................................................................................... 38 Industry ......................................................................................................................... 38 Energy Resources.......................................................................................................... 40 Mineral Resources ........................................................................................................ 42 Trade ............................................................................................................................. 43 Tourism ......................................................................................................................... 44 Banking and Currency .................................................................................................. 45 Investment ..................................................................................................................... 46 Transportation ............................................................................................................... 47 Standard of Living ........................................................................................................ 48 Chapter 3: Assessment ...................................................................................................... 49 Chapter 4: Society ............................................................................................................. 50 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 50 Ethnic and Linguistic Groups ....................................................................................... 51 Religion ......................................................................................................................... 51 Buddhism .................................................................................................................. 51 Other Religions ......................................................................................................... 52 Gender Issues ................................................................................................................ 53 Traditional Clothing ...................................................................................................... 54 Arts ................................................................................................................................ 55 Painting and Sculpture .............................................................................................. 55 Music......................................................................................................................... 56 Architecture............................................................................................................... 56 Sports and Recreation ................................................................................................... 57 Chapter 4: Assessment ...................................................................................................... 59 Page | 3 © DLIFLC Chapter 5: Security ........................................................................................................... 60 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 60 U.S.-Mongolian Relations ............................................................................................ 61 Relations With Neighboring Countries ......................................................................... 62 Russia ........................................................................................................................ 62 China ......................................................................................................................... 63 Military ......................................................................................................................... 65 Terrorist Groups and Activities .................................................................................... 66 Other Issues Affecting Stability .................................................................................... 67 Mineral Wealth, “Dutch Disease,” and Corruption .................................................. 67 Chapter 5: Assessment ...................................................................................................... 69 Final Assessment .............................................................................................................. 70 Further Reading ...............................................................................................................