Alberto Rubio
The Russian Federation is already suspended from the World Tourism Organization. It will not be able to participate again in the decision-making processes of this organization until a new General Assembly decides on its readmission. Russia, for its part, announced its withdrawal from the UNWTO, although this voluntary departure will not be effective for another year.
There was some confusion yesterday when, through social networks, the Russian Embassy in Spain announced its withdrawal from the UNWTO just as the Extraordinary General Assembly was about to begin its meeting. However, these are two separate processes.
On the one hand, the suspension approved by the Assembly is effective immediately. On the other hand, the withdrawal announced by Russia will have to follow a series of steps: first, the Embassy will have to send a letter to the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as the depositary of all diplomatic accreditations, announcing its withdrawal; and only then can it begin the procedure to make it effective, which may take up to a year. Once Russia has left the UNWTO, it will have to reapply for membership like any other non-member country.
Regarding the suspension approved by the Assembly, if Russia wants to recover its rights in the organization, it will have to submit itself to a new vote in a new Assembly, in which it will have to prove that it has stopped violating “the founding principles of the UN and the values that tourism represents, such as peace, prosperity and respect for human rights”, as the Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Reyes Maroto, pointed out yesterday at the end of the meeting.
Diplomatic sources consulted by The Diplomat consider that the announcement by the Russian Federation that it was leaving the UNWTO without waiting for the decision of the General Assembly was nothing more than a ruse to get ahead of a vote that Moscow knew it had lost beforehand.
This announcement, however, did not prevent the Assembly from continuing with the agenda as planned. The only difference is that it will not be necessary for the Assembly to reconvene today, as was on the agenda for the session. The Ad Hoc Committee submitted its report to the Assembly and the vote proceeded as scheduled.
The resolution temporarily suspending Russia’s membership was approved with 78% of the votes. This was far more than the two-thirds required to approve the proposal put forward by France and supported by the vast majority of European countries. In total, there were 40 votes in favor of the suspension and 11 against. There were also 40 abstentions but, for the purposes of the required percentage, only affirmative or negative votes count, not abstentions.
The Russian ambassador, Yuri Korchagin, was in charge of announcing to the Assembly the decision taken by the Kremlin with a brief speech, after which he stood up and left the forum, which was held behind closed doors, without adding anything else. The gesture, according to the sources consulted, indicates that Russia had no intention at any time of putting forward arguments to defend its invasion of Ukraine, in a conclave in which, by the way, the director of the Ukrainian Tourism Agency was present.
