Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh

Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh (Ухнаагийн Хүрэлсүх; born 14 June 1968), also referred to as Khürelsükh Ukhnaa, is the 6th and current president of Mongolia, beginning his term on 25 June 2021 after winning the 2021 Mongolian presidential election.

Khürelsükh was born to a drivers' family on 14 June 1968 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

His father, Ukhnaa, was born in Khentii province, prompting Khürelsükh to take up his father's birthplace as his constituency.

On an interview he gave for TV25, Khürelsükh stated that his father met his mother in Govi-Altai province while he was making wells.

The couple then moved to the capital Ulaanbaatar, where Khürelsükh was born.

Prior to his birth, his father and older sister found a small bronze axe next to a hot spring well, thus prompting the family to name the newborn Khürelsükh, which literally means 'bronze axe'.

Khürelsükh has one older brother, one older sister, and two younger brothers, most of whom are also drivers.

Khürelsükh graduated from the Secondary School No. 2 in 1985.

He graduated from the University of Defense in 1989, with a major in political studies.

From 1989 to 1990, Khürelsükh served as a political deputy in the 1152nd Unit of the Mongolian People's Army.

He was the first Mongolian military officer to resign from duty to maintain his party membership in 1990 when the government sought to separate party membership from various (public) offices.

Khurelsukh has the rank of colonel.

Khürelsükh then went onto work as a political officer at the Central Committee of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party in the early 90s, making him one of the youngest officers in the Central Committee.

Khürelsükh caught the public's attention in the 1990s by organizing demonstrations and hunger strikes in opposition to ongoing political situations at that time.

He studied public administration at the Institute of State Administration and Management Development and Law at the National University of Mongolia, from which he graduated in 1994 and 2000 respectively.

Khürelsükh was appointed as adviser at the MPRP parliamentary group secretariat in 1994.

Having worked there until 1996, he further rose through the ranks to become the general director of the Youth Development Center of the MPRP.

This stint led him to found the Mongolian Democratic Socialist Youth Federation (MDSYF), now the Social Democracy Mongolian Youth Union, in 1997.

In 2000, Khürelsükh ran for member of parliament, winning and serving two consecutive terms in the State Great Khural.

Khürelsükh was also successful within his party, having been elected to the Governing Board of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, for eight years starting from 2000.

Prior to his premiership, Khürelsükh served in the Mongolian government as Minister for Emergency Situations from 2004 to 2006, Minister for Professional Inspection from 2006 to 2008, and two stints as deputy prime minister between 2014 and 2017.

While serving his second terms as Member of Parliament, Khürelsükh was appointed Minister of Emergency Situations in 2004-2006 and Minister of Professional Inspection in 2006-2008.

He held the position until 2005, which led him to be called the leader to the party’s so-called “youth faction”.

In 2007 he founded the Left-wing Association of Mongolia, an NGO that supports the Mongolian People's Party.

The majority of the founding members were activists in the MDSYF, who have 'aged-out' from the party youth wing.

He was the secretary-general of the Mongolian People's Party from 2008 to 2012 and its chairman from 2017 to 2021.

In 2008 he was unanimously voted the Secretary-General of the Party.

Khürelsükh served as the Secretary-General until 2012, when he resigned.

In 2012, Khürelsükh was elected Member of Parliament for a third time.

He was appointed the Deputy Prime Minister of Mongolia in 2013, serving in this role for four years until his appointment as Prime Minister of Mongolia in 2017.

He was prime minister from October 2017 to January 2021 and was elected to the Parliament of Mongolia four times – in 2000, 2004, 2012 and 2020.

He was awarded the United Nations Champion for Disaster Risk Reduction in 2017.

Mongolia's parliament confirmed the nomination of Khürelsükh as the 30th Prime Minister of Mongolia in October 2017.

Khürelsükh succeeded Jargaltulgyn Erdenebat, who was voted out of office in September 2017 amid allegations of corruption and incompetence.

During his confirmation hearing, the new prime minister stated “My cabinet...

will declare justice again,” and, added, “don’t come to me with illegal acts as well as my cabinet members and don’t pressure us to act illegally.”

One of Khürelsükh's largest projects is the oil refinery plant in Dornogobi province of Mongolia.

The oil refinery, established with support from India, will be capable of processing 1.5 million tonnes of crude oil per year, or 30,000 barrels per day, which will be enough to cover domestic needs.

He has made significant contributions to Mongolia's foreign relations.

In April 2018, during an official visit to China, Khürelsükh signed 11 bilateral agreements worth $450 million, including a pact for economic and technological cooperation worth 2 billion yuan ($315 million).