MEETING WITH UMBERTO DE PRETTO, SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL ROAD TRANSPORT UNION
President of Mongolia Khaltmaagiin Battulga visited the headquarters of the International Road Transport Union (IRU) in Geneva, Switzerland, and met its Secretary-General Umberto de Pretto on October 23rd.
At the beginning of the meeting, the sides exchanged views on the implementation of the TIR Convention and trends in the development of global transport sector.
President Battulga underlined that the shortest channel between Europe and the Northeast Asian market is via Mongolia. President Battulga spoke about the nearing completion of construction works to connect Mongolia’s capital city Ulaanbaatar with capitals of all 21 provinces which has yielded a number of positive outcomes, including shortened transport duration and promotion of tourism sector. President Battulga discussed opportunities for cooperation, including a plan to construct a highway connecting Altanbulag, Selenge Aimag, with Zamiin-Uud, Dornogobi Aimag, while mentioning that the project is open to investment from third countries.
For his part, Secretary-General Umberto de Pretto expressed willingness to consider President Battulga’s proposal for inclusion of Mongolians in the training courses and workshops organized by the Union. The Secretary-General emphasized that transport involves plenty of preparation works, including workshops for drivers, managers, and public servants.
The sides discussed regional road transport issues and the Convention on International Transport of Goods Under Cover of TIR Carnets (TIR Convention) during the meeting. At the end of the meeting, President Battulga signed an honorary board commemorating the 70th anniversary of the IRU and wished success to the Secretary-General and the IRU staff members.
