Mongolian Nuclear-Weapons-Free Status

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In 1992 the President of Mongolia, Punsalmaagiyn Ochirbat, announced that his country would seek to become a one-state Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone, or NWFZ. The last Russian troops had left the country that same year, and Mongolia perceived a change in its geopolitical status and sensed an opportunity for neutrality.

The initiative was well received by Mongolia's nuclear armed neighbors, Russia and China, as well as the world community at large, despite being somewhat unorthodox. Previously, NWFZ's had been composed of a group of countries, although the possibility of single state zones had been long recognized: Resolution 3261 F of the UN General Assembly, on December 9, 1974 explicitly states

"obligations relating to the establishment of nuclear-weapon-free zones may be assumed not only by groups of states, including entire continents or large geographical regions, but also by small groups of States and even individual countries."

Mongolia's drive for international recognition yielded fruit in Resolution 53/77 D [1] , which was adopted by the General Assembly on December 4, 1998, which welcomed Mongolia's goal, and put it on the agenda for the next meeting.

Finally, on February 28, 2000, the Mongolian Ambassador to the UN Jargalsaikhan Enkhsaikhan presented a letter [2] outlining the Mongolian denuclearization law, which was then circulated as A/55/56 S/2000/160. At this stage, it appears that the international recognition of Mongolia's nuclear-weapons-free status is complete.