Srinagar, 05-Sep;Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has embarked on a five day visit to Mongolia and Japan. This is the first ever visit by an Indian Defence Minister to Mongolia. It will further consolidate the defence cooperation and strategic partnership between the two countries. During the visit, Singh will hold bilateral talks with Mongolian counterpart Lt Gen. Saikhanbayar. He will also call on President of Mongolia U. Khurelsukh.  India and Mongolia share a strategic partnership and defence is a key pillar of it. The bilateral defence engagements with Mongolia have been expanding over a period of time to include wide ranging contacts between the two countries including Joint Working Group meeting, military to military exchanges, high level visits, capacity building and training programmes and bilateral exercises. During bilateral talks, the two Defence Ministers will review the defence cooperation and explore new initiatives to further strengthen bilateral engagements.  Singh will also visit Japan to engage with India’s allies and partners. He will be attending the 22 Ministerial Level dialogue in Tokyo. In a tweet, the Minister added that India seeks to strengthen defence cooperation and advance regional security and stability.