go [ laughter ] that gets rid of all of that. any president, particularly an older president in his second term begins to say how will history think of me. his legacy in the field of foreign policy is he called them an evil empire. that s not something that s going to stand him in good stead with anyone. but if his legacy is that he helped reduce nuclear weapons and make it a safer world that means a summit, signing arms agreements, the ultimate photo opportunities, a public relations man s dream. again, to your right. thank you, david. hopes, fears, expectations for this summit. an expect ant world keeps wondering about arms and the men and the issues.
pro test movement that ended communist rule in his country, now leading mongolia into a new era, drawing on the spirit of genghis kahn. i think genghis kahn had certain negative image in this world because i think he didn t have any person, pr person. reporter: president tsakhia elbegdorj is mongolia s best public relations man. he leads a country where a third of the people are below the poverty line, yet on the cusp of great riches. mining companies are lining up to do business. rich deals are being inked for mongolia s reserves of coal, gold and copper. does it make you feel a bit afraid, a little bit nervous about managing these changes? yes. you ll know in a little bit, there are mining mania. reporter: mining mania? yes, mining mania.
the country s communist rule. he s the son of a goat herder but he views himself as a son of genghis kahn. as he told stan grant, he sees the late u.s. president ronald reagan as a role model. there s another interesting book here. keith richards, alive. . he s certainly a man of contrast, born a nomad, son of a goat herder and rock n roll fanatic. tsakhia elbegdorj is indeed a modern leader, schooled in soviet euro russia but inspired by an american president, ronald reagan. when he talk about mr. gorbachev, tear down the wall, that gave us inspiration. reporter: he was part of the
it s like mining love and mining phobia, also some hatred. you know, with what will happen? reporter: if there s pressure within, there s also a looming challenge outside mongolia s borders. genghis kahn once famously said for him to succeed, all others must fail. that is far from the reality of mongolia today. it sits sandwiched between two giants, russia and china and mongolia s fate depends very much on them. and when china rules the world, of course, china has a big impact on your country? yes, that s right. i say my country is say little pony between two big elephants. reporter: how does a little pony survive between two big elephants? president tsakhia elbegdorj knows his history, he s seem regimes fall and those tyrants don t last. he also knows his people are watching.
if we put those money in pockets of those in power we will end very badly. we know that. reporter: the rock n roll president right now is trusting in the words of that rolling stones song time is on my side. stan grant, cnn, mongolia. coming up here on world business today, we go from metals and mining to materials of a rather different kind. we ll be bringing you the store riff a hong kong entrepreneur who has built his business one stitch at a time. all that and more to come, after the break.