In a recent visit to Mongolia, Russian President Vladimir Putin received a warm welcome despite the country’s history with the Soviet Union. Mongolia, a member of the International Criminal Court, refused to honor an arrest warrant for Putin issued by the ICC. The Russified Mongol population in Russia, the Buryats, suffer high casualties in Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, with some joining the Ukrainian side in protest. The legacy of the Soviet era is still evident in Mongolia, where Cyrillic scripts are used instead of traditional Mongolian scripts. Modern Mongolia owes its existence to Soviet support, with strong ties to Moscow ensuring independence.
The country declared its independence in 1911, recognized by the Bolsheviks in Russia in 1919. The Mongolian People’s Republic was established in 1924, becoming a Soviet satellite state until 1990. Mongolia saw purges and oppressions during communist rule, targeting the aristocracy and religious establishment. Despite improvements in literacy rates, the purges under Stalin’s ally Khorloogiin Choibalsan led to tens of thousands of deaths, including many Buddhist lamas. Today, with Putin’s visit marking a complex history, Mongolia stands as a reminder of its Soviet past through Cyrillic signs and silent witnesses of past tragedies.
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