Clinton promotes democracy in Mongolia

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Mongolia Monday as part of an Asian tour aimed at promoting democracy, as local politicians were locked in dispute over recent elections. Mongolian President Tsakhia Elbegdorj has called on all parties to agree on forming a ruling coalition, after official results showed the opposition Democratic Party won most seats, but not enough for a majority. There have been days of unease since the June 28 elections in which some parties said a new automated voting system to elect the Great Hural, Mongolia's 76-member parliament, had failed. "The secretary is going to be very clear that we celebrate a succession of successful elections in Mongolia," a former Soviet satellite, a top State Department official told reporters traveling with Clinton. Mongolia is sandwiched between Russia and China. After ending Soviet-backed rule in 1990, it has undergone a relatively peaceful and successful transition into a stable democracy. Clinton arrived in Ulan Bator from Tokyo, where she used a global forum on Sunday to make a powerful plea for the rights of women in Afghanistan.