Travel/Tourism
Russia Opposes Tit-for-Tat Visa Requirements to Save Tourism Industry
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
The 7th Eastern Economic Forum held in Vladivostok, among others, seeks to address obstacles affecting the tourism industry.
Within the context of building internal tourism infrastructure, extra-budgetary investment is necessary for its prompt realization. The federal government and the Far East regional authority have also focused on this development programme these past years.
In general, unprecedented funding has been allocated to speed up the creation of tourism infrastructure. The government has provided the necessary conditions for the synergy of resources so that internal and foreign tourists can travel around at affordable prices and vacation in modern resorts and entertainment destinations.
But efforts have hit a number of setbacks, many political developments are sharply influencing aspects of the industry. Russia’s inbound and outbound tourism virtually collapsed, first due to the two-year COVID-19 lockdown and now largely due to the Ukraine crisis that has brought to the business landscape hefty sanctions. The aviation industry is still struggling to float and maintain normal standard operations.
At the Eastern Economic Forum, the session entitled Travelling to the East: Opportunities for Investors and Tourists panellists distinctively noted negative external factors the tourism industry and argued for measures for its recovery.
Russian Federal Agency for Tourism (Rostourism) head, Zarina Doguzova, is advocating a review of policies negatively impacting the industry.
She considers Foreign Affairs Ministry’s consular services crippling the development of the tourism industry and that Russia is longer friendly due to its tit-for-tat responses to external countries.
Doguzova explained in an interview with Rossiya-24 (VGTRK) on the sidelines of the forum that the necessary measures to sustain tourism including the launch of an electronic visa program for citizens of 52 countries, including those Russia has designated as “unfriendly” ones in the near future.
Russia earlier planned to launch e-visas for citizens of 52 countries, including European nations, she said. Certainly, there is the need to do some information work and launch an ad campaign. Many fear visiting us for various obvious reasons as a direct result of consistent confrontations and geopolitical changes.
“Foreign tourists help make dozens of billions of dollars around the world. These are big revenues which would stimulate the development of infrastructure and help create new jobs. It’s strategically important to communicate our position to the world, so that tourists, citizens of countries whose governments are taking unfriendly steps toward our country, would have a chance to see Russia,” Doguzova said.
Earlier during a meeting of the Russian State Council praesidium dealing with the development of tourism on September 6, Doguzova asked President Vladimir Putin to revisit the plans to launch e-visas for citizens of 52 countries, without following the reciprocity principle, which Russia usually sticks to as concerns visas.
Putin suggested elaborating on this proposal “without clinging to reciprocity.” while addressing the forum session, Putin said Russia would not respond symmetrically to the European Union’s decision to suspend the Visa Facilitation Agreement with Russia.
He expressed the desire to develop the idea of expanding the practice of visa-free travel for citizens of specific countries, including those visiting Russia on organized group tours and further proposed developing bilateral cooperation on establishing a visa-free travel framework with foreign countries.
“I would suggest talking not about certain [nations with whom visa-free travel could be established]. Nothing should be imposed on anyone. One should just talk about cooperation on a bilateral track. As regards establishing visa-free travel on a bilateral basis in order to facilitate mutual visits, advice is needed from the Foreign Ministry,” he said.
“In principle, I wouldn’t be holding on to reciprocity in this case. I know a general principle that the Foreign Ministry has, which is the reciprocity principle. When it comes to serving our interests, all these principles should be used, where this is beneficial. If something creates obstacles for us, what are such principles for? One could be more flexible,” Putin said.
Russians have restricted their foreign travel due to the current global changes especially the confrontation between the United States, Europe and Russia. According to the European Council decision published in the EU Official Journal, the European Union members suspended the visa facilitation agreement between the European Union and Russia.
“The application of the Agreement between the European Community and the Russian Federation on the facilitation of the issuance of visas to the citizens of the European Union and the Russian Federation (‘the Agreement’) is suspended in whole as regards citizens of the Russian Federation, as from 12 September 2022,” the statement says on its website. It is assumed that the cost of visas and the terms of their registration will increase significantly, and the issuance of visas for tourist purposes will be the last priority of consulates.
Poland and Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) have coordinated restrictions for Russians. In their statement, Poland and the Baltic states expressed concern “about the substantial and growing influx of Russian citizens to the European Union and the Schengen area through our borders. We believe that this is becoming a serious threat to public security and to the overall shared Schengen area,” according to the European Commission.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Air travellers flying through Emirates will enjoy Starlink Wi-Fi onboard after the completion of the installation of the internet service on the company’s flagship A380.
The introduction of Starlink on the A380 builds on Emirates’ ongoing investment into redefining the customer journey, including one of the most ambitious retrofit programmes in aviation history.
The airline operator recently test-run this on a flight to Dubai, and it allowed passengers to enjoy seamless broadband while flying at 40,000 feet.
The Emirates A380 was one of the first commercial aircraft in the world to offer internet to its customers, with first-generation systems offering a total aircraft bandwidth of less than 1 Mbps. The installation and certification were accomplished in Newquay, UK.
With more A380s scheduled for accelerated installation throughout 2026, Emirates customers will soon enjoy a transformative leap in onboard connectivity with the ability to stream, game, browse, and work throughout their journey on personal devices.
The service will be complimentary for all customers, across all cabins, with easy sign-up and access. Future enhancements will include Live TV streaming over Starlink, initially on personal devices and later integrated into seatback screens.
So far, more than 650,000 Emirates customers have already flown on Starlink‑equipped flights, experiencing the benefits of next‑generation onboard connectivity firsthand.
As the world’s largest passenger aircraft, the A380 presents unique engineering challenges and opportunities. This industry-first Starlink configuration is designed to meet the demands of the A380’s ‘double-decker’ layout and high passenger capacity and is capable of delivering more than 2 Gbps of total aircraft bandwidth across the cabin.
Compared with the Emirates Boeing 777, the Emirates A380 features additional wireless access points and a third antenna to deliver an enhanced connectivity experience for its higher passenger capacity. Optimised inter‑deck integration supports a seamless Wi‑Fi experience, with customers able to enjoy high speeds depending on usage and device capability.
Starlink installations will soon begin at Emirates Engineering facilities in Dubai to accelerate deployment across the fleet.
Emirates is committed to bringing the best possible connectivity to its entire fleet at the earliest opportunity, with 25 Boeing 777-300ER aircraft already equipped with Starlink and the first A380 now joining service.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian government is capping jet fuel prices and allowing airlines to get supplies on credit as part of efforts to avert flight disruptions caused by soaring fuel costs.
Reuters reported that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) said in an internal document that aviation fuel should sell for N1,760 to N1,988 ($1.29 to $1.46) per litre in Lagos and N1,809 to N2,037 in Abuja, based on benchmarks from April 17 to April 23.
The decision follows emergency talks after airlines threatened to go on a strike, warning that jet fuel prices had jumped by more than 300 per cent, forcing fare increases and raising the risk of capacity cuts.
The strike was averted after the federal government met with the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) and other stakeholders.
President Bola Tinubu last week approved 30 per cent relief on airlines’ debts to aviation agencies and ordered fuel marketers, airlines and regulators to agree on a “fair” fuel price within 72 hours to prevent the sector-wide shutdown that would have impacted the country’s economy.
The talks also agreed to grant airlines a 30-day credit window to pay for fuel and tasked the aviation ministry with mediating debt disputes between operators and oil marketers, according to the document.
The NMDPRA also formed a technical committee, which recommended that fuel marketers sell directly to airlines within the indicated price range to cut costs and improve supply-chain transparency.
The committee also urged regulators to engage Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals over the increased premiums applied to international benchmarks used to price jet fuel.
Other recommendations include validating airside fuel distributors with adequate infrastructure, potentially reducing the number of authorised suppliers at airports, and considering jet fuel for Nigeria’s Crude-for-Naira initiative to limit airlines’ foreign exchange exposure. So far, the Crude-for-Naira has only been for upstream operations.
The cost of fuel has generally risen in the last two months due to the escalating war with Iran by the US and Israel, which has triggered one of the most severe energy shocks in decades. Oil prices are currently above $100 per barrel as markets react to escalating tensions and the risk of prolonged disruption.
At the centre of the crisis is the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of global oil supply flows. With shipping constrained, the effects are cascading across the global economy, raising fuel costs, fueling inflation, and increasing the risk of economic slowdown across many economies. This is forcing airlines to raise fares, curb growth plans and rethink forecasts.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The United States (US) has warned that visa overstays by Nigerian travellers could deny future opportunities for other aspiring applicants.
The United States embassy had earlier in February stated that compliance would help protect visa access for students and business travellers.
In a reminder statement posted on its official X handle on Monday, the US Mission in Nigeria advised that strengthening compliance helps protect visa access for students, business travellers, and families who travel responsibly.
“#Reminder: Visa overstays by Nigerian travellers can affect opportunities for their fellow citizens. Strengthening compliance helps protect access for students, business travellers, and families who travel responsibly. If you are aware of visa fraud, please report it to [email protected] or [email protected],” the statement read.
Last August, the Mission also announced that all non-immigrant visa applicants must now provide details of their social media accounts from the past five years.
In a statement, the embassy said applicants are required to disclose usernames or handles from every platform used within the period when completing the DS-160 visa application form.
“Visa applicants are required to list all social media usernames or handles of every platform they have used from the last 5 years on the DS-160 visa application form. Applicants certify that the information in their visa application is true and correct before they sign and submit,” the statement read.
The mission warned that omitting such information could result in visa denial and render applicants ineligible for future visas.
The DS-160 is the standard online form required for most US non-immigrant visas, including temporary business (B-1), tourism (B-2), student visas (F and M), and work-related categories such as the H-1B.
It insisted the new rules were designed to enhance security, they come amid repeated US criticism of governments accused of clamping down on free speech online.
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