Photo Gallery Merkel in Mongolia
German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited Mongolia this week as part of her Asia tour. She was received in the Mongolian state yurt by President Tsakhilganiin Elbegdorj during her visit to the Mongolian capital Ulan Bator.
Cool-headed economic interests were behind the trip: The Central Asian country has raw materials that Germany's industry desperately needs. Here, the Gorkhi-Terelj National Park.
On Thursday, the governments of the two countries signed a commodity partnership agreement. "We have the raw materials, Germany has the latest technology and the know-how," said Mongolian Prime Minister Sukhbaatar Batbold (right).
On Wednesday evening, Merkel received a traditional greeting on arrival in Ulan Bator.
Merkel poses with a Mongolian boy in traditional costume in Ulan Bator on Thursday.
Merkel also met Mongolian soldiers who serve together with German soldiers in Afghanistan.
It was the first visit by a German chancellor to Mongolia. This Mercedes Benz branch in Ulan Bator put up a sign welcoming the chancellor.
Mongolia is one of the top 10 countries in the world in terms of quantities of natural resources and is home to huge deposits of copper, gold, silver and uranium. Here, a view of smog over Ulan Bator.
Despite the country's mineral wealth, around a third of Mongolia's 2.7 million people live in poverty. Here, a family living in a yurt near Ulan Bator.
