Trending on X (10 a.m.): D.Batlut’s welcome, Ukraine’s nuclear past, France riots, tobacco law, Hormuz

These are the 8 topics Mongolian users discussed most on X between 06:13 and 10:13 on October 18 (Ulaanbaatar time), ranked by the likes, reposts and views of the leading posts. On Sunday morning, besides weekend greetings and photos from the countryside, users talked most about the honour-guard welcome given to Defence Minister D.Batlut, Ukraine’s 1994 decision to give up its nuclear weapons, the rioting and looting across France, the newly amended tobacco law and the reported tanker blasts in the Strait of Hormuz. There were 8 real, verified topics in this window, so we did not pad the list to 10. Figures are as of 10:30.

1. Sunday morning: countryside photos and snow in the west (update)

The weekend morning greetings noted in our previous roundup continued, with users sharing autumn photos from the countryside. The post with the most engagement in this window was a morning greeting from Bömbögör soum in Bayankhongor province by @Shagdarsurenba3. @bayasgalan9199 wrote that “my Khoimor homeland is covered in snow.”

According to the weather agency’s forecast, rain, sleet and snow are expected today in most of Zavkhan and in parts of Khovd, Govi-Altai, northern Bayankhongor, Bayan-Ölgii, Uvs, Khövsgöl and Arkhangai, with snowstorms. Strong winds are forecast in the Altai ranges and the Gobi, and herders and drivers were warned about icy roads on mountain passes. @livetvmn shared the forecast; in Ulaanbaatar it will be cloudy and dry, with daytime temperatures of 0 to +2°C.

2. Honour-guard welcome for D.Batlut draws criticism (update)

As noted in our previous roundup, Defence Minister D.Batlut was greeted with a ceremony by the honour guard of the Choibalsan garrison in Dornod province on October 17, and the discussion widened in this window. @SBayar12 wrote that such a welcome is understandable for the head of state and commander-in-chief, but that holding one for a single cabinet member is “arrogance that serves a personal ego with state resources.” The post was viewed about 3,000 times, the widest reach in this window.

Responding to similar criticism earlier, the Defence Ministry pointed out that Article 34.1 of the parade regulations in the general military statutes lists the President, the Speaker of parliament, the Prime Minister, the Defence Minister and the Chief of the General Staff as officials to be greeted by the State Honour Guard, and asked the public not to distort ceremonies carried out under those rules. The minister has also faced press criticism recently over accountability for the death of a conscript who was beaten at a military unit in Bayankhongor province. @SBayar12’s criticism is the user’s personal view.

Related:

https://www.egov.mn/en/article/trending-on-x-6-am-limoges-town-hall-fire-dbatlut-in-dornod-ukraines-turbojets-hungary-albania

3. Ukraine’s 1994 decision to give up nuclear weapons resurfaces (update)

@SBayar12 recalled that Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons in 1994 in exchange for assurances of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and urged readers to think for themselves about that history in today’s situation. @rdavaadorj shared footage of then-US President Bill Clinton thanking Ukraine in November 1994 for giving up its nuclear arsenal.

Under the Budapest Memorandum signed on December 5, 1994, the United States, the United Kingdom and Russia gave Ukraine assurances to respect its independence and borders, while France and China gave similar assurances in separate documents. The topic resurfaced amid criticism of the US decision to suspend some sanctions on Russia. In an open letter to Donald Trump on October 15, former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko highlighted the Budapest Memorandum and wrote that “Ukraine’s desire for peace is not willingness to surrender.” On October 16, Trump said the US would “get a deal on nuclear arms with Russia and China.”

4. France: protests turn into rioting and looting nationwide, 1,200 arrested (update)

After our previous roundup reported the fire at Limoges town hall, detailed reports of the October 17 protests turning into rioting and looting in many French cities spread among Mongolian users in this window. @livetvmn reported that more than 150 police officers were injured, a 17-year-old protester in Saint-Étienne lost his right hand to a grenade and 1,200 people were detained, while @erdzaya shared footage said to show luxury boutiques such as Celine being looted in central Paris.

According to AFP and the BBC, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said 1,200 people had been arrested and 150 police officers injured. The Interior Ministry estimated that 550,000 people took part nationwide in marches against the rising cost of living, school conditions and fuel prices. Dozens of shops were looted in Paris, Marseille, Nice, Nantes, Bordeaux, Limoges, Lille, Toulouse and Strasbourg, and Lyon’s historic tourist office building was set on fire. President Emmanuel Macron said vandals and looters would be prosecuted and punished.

Related:

https://www.egov.mn/en/article/french-protests-turn-to-rioting-and-looting-as-1200-are-arrested-and-150-police-injured

https://www.egov.mn/en/article/limoges-143-year-old-town-hall-largely-destroyed-by-fire-during-french-cost-of-living-protests

5. Tobacco law: debate over the ban on flavoured vapes (update)

After parliament passed amendments to the Tobacco Control Law on October 16, debate over its provisions continued. @Purevdulam_mn asked whose interests were served by banning flavoured vapes while leaving ordinary cigarettes on sale, and @gereltuya29, under the impression that snuff had been banned, argued that strict bans would only grow the black market. @livetvmn reported that former MP L.Erdenechimeg called the law “very effective in keeping children away from tobacco.”

Under the amended law, from January 1, 2027, e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products will be subject to the same controls and taxes as cigarettes, and sales to minors will be banned. Adding flavours or scents, including menthol, is banned for all tobacco products and devices except snuff and waterpipe tobacco, so the flavour ban applies to cigarettes as well as vapes. MP A.Ariunzaya stressed that snuff, the traditional Mongolian tobacco, is not affected at all.

6. Strait of Hormuz: Iran says two supertankers hit mines; the US denies it (new)

@rdavaadorj shared a statement from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that a supertanker carrying two million barrels of oil had hit a mine and caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz. According to Reuters and AP, the IRGC navy said on October 17 that two tankers, each carrying about 2 million barrels of crude, hit mines and caught fire after switching off their positioning and radar systems and trying to use a route not authorised by Iran. The vessels were not named and the reports could not be independently confirmed. US Central Command dismissed the claim as false. The strait has been the main flashpoint between Iran and the United States since war broke out in Iran in late February.

7. Park being built on 6,000 square metres behind the Zhukov monument (new)

@UBn_mn reported that Ulaanbaatar Governor and City Administrator B.Purevdagva said work to turn 6,000 square metres of land behind the Zhukov monument into a park would be 90% complete by November 15, and the park would open next spring. According to UBN.mn and MNB, on June 19 Purevdagva cancelled a construction permit for the site in the 4th khoroo of Bayanzürkh district, citing heavy development and density in the area, and decided to turn it into a public park. Landscaping began on October 9 and is now 15% complete.

8. Japan: yakuza member acquitted in Gyoza no Ohsho president murder case (new)

@Hujihujina wrote about a court acquitting a yakuza member accused of the 2013 shooting of the president of Japan’s Gyoza no Ohsho restaurant chain. According to Jiji Press and Kyodo News, Kyoto District Court on October 16 acquitted Yukio Tanaka, 59, a senior member of an affiliate of the Kudo-kai gang. Prosecutors had sought a life sentence. The court accepted that cigarette butts found near the scene carried the defendant’s DNA, but said it could not rule out that a third party had placed them there, and there was no direct evidence. Takayuki Ohigashi, president of Ohsho Food Service, was shot dead in the car park of the company’s Kyoto headquarters on December 19, 2013.

Methodology: We ranked posts from about 200 major news and influential accounts found through X search, plus more than 50 keyword searches, by an engagement score (likes + 2× reposts + views/100), and checked the facts against news sites. Posts that could not be verified or that carried a risk of defamation were left out. Views expressed by individuals on X do not represent the position of egov.mn.