The cabinet meeting held on Saturday
featured the topic of visa related issues specifically those regarding
Poland, Serbia and Columbia.

Currently Mongolia has agreements
with 23 countries that allow travel reciprocally without a visa for both
diplomatic and official passport holders. Ordinary passport holders are
able to travel to 16 of these countries without visas.

The
proposal of traveling to Serbia without a visa for 90 days within 6
months was voted  favorably at the Cabinet meeting. The cabinet members
believe such a proposal to ease  visa requirements is a positive step to
encourage bilateral relations with Serbia for tourism and to support
business and enterprises of both countries since establishing diplomatic
relations between Mongolia and the former Yugoslavia.

During
the cabinet meeting the agreement on mutual visa liberalization for
holders of diplomatic and official passports between nationals of
Mongolia and Columbia, signed at the 68th UN Assembly last September,
was approved.

According to the agreement, official and
diplomatic passport holders of both nationals will be able to travel to
the other country for up to 30 days without a visa.

There were
also amendments into the protocol for the agreement on the mutual visa
liberalization for holders of diplomatic and official passport holders
between the Governments of Mongolia and Poland.

The agreement was signed between Mongolia and Poland in June 2011.

Some
problems had arisen as an official passport is translated into English
as a “service passport” meaning some official passport holders faced
misunderstandings at Polish Customs.

Additional clarifications into the agreement were needed to specify the type of passport the agreement referred to.