Genghis Khan unified the all of Mongol speaking khanates and tribes on the Mongolian plateau, and his descendants eventually conquered almost the entirety of Asia, the Middle East, and parts of Eastern and Central Europe.

In the 1260s and 1270s they used seapower while conquering the Song dynasty of China, though they were unable to mount successful seaborne campaigns against Japan due to storms and rough battles.

Although the Mongols became united once again during the reign of Esen Taishi and Batmongkhe Dayan Khan, and conducted successful military campaigns against the Ming dynasty and Central Asia.

The Dzungar Khanate strengthened its influence in Central Asia from western Mongolia, developing artillery, ground forces, and cavalry, leading the Mongol army to a more advanced stage.

This initial independence did not last, with Mongolia being occupied successively by the Chinese Beiyang Government, and Baron Ungern's White Russian forces.

The modern precursor to the Mongolian Armed Forces was placed, with men's conscription and a permanent military structure starting in 1912.

The MPRP was aided by the Red Army, which helped to secure the Mongolian People's Republic and remained in its territory until at least 1925.

The Soviets dispatched a new Corps commander, Comcor Georgy Zhukov, who arrived on 5 June and brought more motorized and armored forces (I Army Group) to the combat zone.

Zhamyangiyn Lhagvasuren, Corps Commissar of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Army, was appointed Zhukov's deputy.

In the beginning stage of World War II, the Mongolian People's Army was involved in the Battle of Khalkhin Gol, when Japanese forces, together with the puppet state of Manchukuo, attempted to invade Mongolia from the Khalkha River.

In 1945, Mongolian forces participated in the Soviet invasion of Manchuria under the command of the Red Army, among the last engagements of World War II.

During 1946–1948, the Mongolian People's Army successfully repelled attacks from the Kuomintang's Hui regiment and their Kazakh allies in the border between Mongolia and Xinjiang.

In 2002, a law was passed that enabled Mongolian Army and police forces to conduct UN-backed and other international peacekeeping missions abroad.

Mongolian troops, numbering 180 at its peak, were under Multinational Division Central-South and were tasked with guarding the main Polish base, Camp Echo.

[13] Then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers, visited Ulaanbaatar on 13 January 2004 and expressed his appreciation for the deployment of a 173-strong contingent to Iraq.

[15] In June 2005, Batzorigiyn Erdenebat, the Vice Minister of National Defense, told Jane's Defence Weekly that the deployment of forces in Mongolia was changing away from its Cold War, southern-orientated against China posture.

In 2021, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the armed forces, it was awarded the Order of Genghis Khan by President Khaltmaagiin Battulga.

In 2006 it deployed a 250 person contingent to the United Nations Mission in Liberia, the country's first sizeable contribution to UN peacekeeping.

After the end of the Cold War and the advent of the Democratic Revolution, the air force was effectively grounded due to a lack of fuel and spare parts.

[31] Left without Russian aid, the Mongolian air force inventory gradually reduced to a few Antonov An-24/26 tactical airlifters and a dozen airworthy Mi-24 and Mi-8 helicopters.

The Ministry of Defense and the General Staff of the Armed Forces have established six civil engineering units over the last 10 years.

A project to upgrade the Armed Forces' information and communication network, conduct integrated monitoring, detect cyber attacks, and install response equipment is expected to be completed in August 2021.

In the 13th century, the Mongolian Navy became one of the largest in the world under Kublai Khan,[37] though most of this fleet sank during the Mongol invasions of Japan.

[39] There is a misconception that the tugboat Sukhbaatar (a Project 758B built 1983 by Kama Shipbuilding in Perm, Russia) [40] and its crew, which was used for cargo transportation in Lake Khövsgöl, are the Mongolian navy.

[47] More than 20 percent of the total personnel of the Armed Forces are women, who work mainly in communications, logistics and medical sectors.

Major N. Nyamjargal was the first female member of the Armed Forces to serve as a UN-mandated military observer in Western Sahara in 2007.

[50] On 16 March 1921, a joint meeting of the Provisional People's Government and the members of the Central Committee of the MPRP decided to establish a "Military Judicial Office under the Ministry of Defense".