Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj

"Mongolia is a country that is capable of fixing past mistakes. It is an open country, and we need investments if we want to avoid capital shortages, currency depreciation and inflation. Improving the legal environment in order to attract investments again and regain the confidence of investors is therefore one of the priorities for my administration."

"I made a very historic decision. Every month, we will give cash to our athletes for their lifetime if they get medals in the Olympic games."

"Of course, when you are in office, you have certain responsibilities. But when you are out of office, you also have more freedom to express your ideas."

"The only way to bring peace and stability is through a system of [norms], laws and institutions that every country agrees to abide by. If the UN fails to adopt [such a system], we all fail. When we face global challenges, we must admit one thing: no one country – big or small – can address them on its own. Therefore, the coordinated actions of all players and countries are needed."

"We all know there are sound critiques of the UN. If our United Nations is to survive in the new reality, we must embrace substantive change. We need reforms to build a just common home. If we delay action, change will become more painful and challenging."

"We have two big neighbors, and, of course, we are really striving to maintain neighborly good relations with our two neighbors. As well, we want to have good relations with other nations. All those other nations we call our third neighbor. This is the concept after 1990."

"We never hide our shadow, we give more power to our people, to our media. If our three million people participate, I think we are going to be a big, powerful country."

"The values connection is very important. We have to strengthen that connection. If America invests in that, America will have many friends who live on their own, not with bombs or American troops."

"We have a long-term goal to build the foundation for continued, practical cooperation by continuously holding official and unofficial meetings based on the principle of respecting the rights and proposals of the participants."

"No dictatorship can stay (in power) for good... People's aspirations for a free life will be the everlasting strength."

"We arrived from being the most isolated and closed communist regime in the world to one of the most open. Today we have a dynamic market economy, a vibrant, creative society."

"We should never take democracy for granted. Neither should we worship it. It must be nurtured and strengthened on a daily basis. It is our way of living, our state of mind. A democratic society is sustainable because it aims at the highest development of every one of its members."

"Therefore, our common goal as leaders is to provide for an environment where the democratic institutions can thrive – provide for rule of law, human rights, democratic governance, and free and fair elections. And we must enforce accountability, accountability, and again, accountability. The people will do the rest in a democracy. For only in a democracy is everyone provided with opportunities for self-development and realization."