Cooperation projects in all the areas in which the European Union is involved in Mongolia are based on Country Strategies which provide the strategic framework for EU assistance. The CSP sets out the cooperation objectives, policy responses and priority areas of cooperation based on the political and socio-economic situation in Mongolia. Based on the Country Strategies, Indicative Programmes outline in detail how the Strategy will be implemented.
 
The latest Strategy Paper 2007-2013 and Multiannual Indicative Programme 2007-2010 is based on the new Development Cooperation Instrument (DCI) DCI has replaced previous instruments such as TACIS and ALA.
 
This new Strategy focuses on poverty alleviation through sustainable rural development. The Strategy responds to the need to improve living conditions and sustainable employment in the Mongolian countryside and to slow down the rural exodus. It also foresees possibilities for involvement in other sectors such as education or trade and economic cooperation. Continued work in rural development builds on the satisfactory results of the preceding Country Strategy Paper 2002-2006.