U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld stopped briefly in Mongolia on Saturday to encourage its efforts to build a peacekeeping force with a global reach. "If there's anything that's clear in the 21st century, it's that the world needs peacekeepers," Rumsfeld told a joint news conference with his Mongolian counterpart, Tserenkhuu Sharavdorj. "I congratulate the people of Mongolia, the government and the armed forces of Mongolia for selecting that (peacekeeping) as a principle aspect of their military focus, and certainly the United States is anxious and willing and ready to be of assistance," he added. A contingent of six U.S. Marines is working closely with the Mongolian Army, which numbers 11,000 in a nation of 2.8 million people, and the Pentagon is planning to supply the army with body armor and other equipment to help them design a more modern force proficient in peacekeeping duties. At a ceremony, Rumsfeld spoke to 180 Mongolian Army veterans who had served in either Iraq or Afghanistan. He told them that history would look kindly on their efforts, and he thanked them for their contributions. "It's a privilege to be able to look you in the eye and say thank you," he was quoted as saying by The Associated Press. Rumsfeld also met with President Nambaryn Enkhbayar. Rumsfeld arrived in Ulan Bator from Seoul, South Korea, where he spent two days in defense consultations. Later Saturday he was set to fly to Vilnius, Lithuania, where he is scheduled to attend NATO talks on Monday. Rumsfeld had been scheduled to visit Astana, Kazakhstan, after his Mongolia stop, but that leg of the trip was canceled. U.S. officials said there had been a mix-up in scheduling with Kazakh officials.
