Interviewed: Elena Olkhovskaya
We met and talked with the new Consul General. The interview touched on a variety of issues relating to the lives of compatriots, the rights and obligations of citizens of the Russian Federation and the activities of Russian foreign agencies abroad. Meet Gocha Levanovich Buachidze, the new consul general of Russia and our interlocutor.
Good afternoon, Gocha Levanovich. Let's start our acquaintance traditionally. Please tell us briefly about yourself.
Born in 1963. Since childhood, I was attracted to the Arab East, this hobby also determined my choice of a higher educational institution. I am a graduate of Tbilisi State University, Department of Oriental Studies. In 1988-89 held an internship in Syria, at Damascus University. In the system of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 1991. In 1999 he graduated with honors from the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, candidate of historical sciences. Married, raising three sons. Older 12 and 11 years old, a little 3 months.
I worked in the Middle East for over 17 years. Visited all countries of the Arab East, except Djibouti and Mauritania. He worked in the embassies of Russia - in Syria and in Israel.
In the East, it is usually not customary to ask about wives, but if you do not mind who she is - the guardian of your hearth.
We have been married mail for 15 years. My wife received 2 higher educations, but did not begin to pursue a career, although she, undoubtedly, was a talented person, and she devoted herself to raising our children. I believe that this is the most important and far from easy work.
Which of the Middle Eastern countries in which you worked was remembered and loved by you the most. And why?
The most lasting impressions left Syria in my heart. He worked in this country for 8 years, and I consider her my second homeland. My heart aches from what is happening there. Syria is my first love that is not forgotten. The next business trip was Israel, where it performed its diplomatic mission for 6.5 years. Then he returned to Moscow, where for four and a half years he held the position of Deputy Head of the Department of the Middle East and Africa at the Consular Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and for the last three months before arriving in Dubai, he acted as the Head of the Department of Asian countries. And now I'm here in the UAE.
Over the years, we have been writing about what functions are performed by the embassy and consulate general of Russia in the UAE. And yet, starting a new job, what do you plan to do in the first place?
In conditions of dynamically developing international relations, we see our task in bringing foreign policy closer to the real needs of Russian citizens and our compatriots abroad. In practical terms, this is expressed in protecting the rights and interests of Russian legal entities and individuals, including those who, by the will of fate, find themselves in a difficult situation abroad or in trouble, as well as improving the consular services of Russian citizens temporarily or permanently residing abroad, facilitating the visa regime between Russia and foreign countries, assisting Russian entrepreneurs in their foreign economic activity. This year we will continue to work in all these and other areas.
We will change the form of the Consulate General. Let's start by upgrading our site. And the first thing we will do is post on the website samples of filling and forms of all documents. An electronic queue will also be created so that a person comes to the consulate only once - put his signature on the documents and pay the consular fee. A forum will work on the site, where our citizens will be able to communicate and receive more information from employees without coming to us.
But, I want to note that Russian citizens can always use the site www.mid.ru. A unique consular service portal was created there, where there is a specialized section on the UAE, which was developed by a former employee of the Russian Consulate General in Dubai, Evgeny Shcherbanev. This section has all the necessary information for those wishing to visit the UAE.
This is really important, as incidents happen with our tourists. You were involved in a situation with a citizen detained in the Emirates on suspicion of selling counterfeit dollars? The press wrote a lot about this.
This is a sad story, but at the beginning. You, as a journalist, are aware of how our media and your colleagues often wishful thinking. I read articles under the headings “Arrest under palm trees” in “Rossiyskaya Gazeta” and “Arrest not canceled” in “Komsomolskaya Pravda” ... I was ashamed of the unprofessionalism of journalists. Our citizen was not arrested in the UAE, as the court imposes an arrest. She was detained on suspicion of selling counterfeit currency. They wrote that they did not feed her, that her husband paid for the services of lawyers, and all sorts of nonsense. Responsibly declare that this is all untrue! I met her husband in Moscow both before and after the broadcast on the Rossiya channel, and were in contact until her return to Ufa. But here lies our common problem - the low level of legal consciousness of our society.
And if we talk about this particular case, then this can happen to each of us, but the first mistake was made by citizen Idrisova by signing the police protocol, not knowing the Arabic language and becoming a defendant in the criminal case, and only then reporting this to the Consulate General. Belatedly, and this is true, enormous efforts were made by the diplomats to prove that it was an unintentional act on her part. On January 5, 2012, the case was closed, and the tourist returned home.
It must always be remembered that while abroad, we are dealing with the law enforcement system of another state, and ignorance of the laws of the host country does not relieve us of responsibility for our deeds. We are in a different, albeit friendly, country. We cannot act with our charter in a strange house, and it is not always possible to quickly resolve issues.
Here is another important thing. The avalanche-like increase in the number of foreign citizens applying for Russian entry visas, the expanding flow of Russian tourists and entrepreneurs actively exploring international routes and foreign markets - all this leads to a stable annual increase in the volume of consular work. Sometimes we are not able to process all applications on time, which causes fair complaints from both Russian and foreign citizens, leads to queues for obtaining passports and visas. But we are trying to rectify the situation.
You mentioned the consular fee, which is levied on paperwork. For several years, our citizens have complained that the bank branch is far from the consulate general, and in the summer in the heat of payment issues become very acute. Will something be undertaken in this direction?
Yes, we will work in this direction, including negotiations with banks in order to establish bank terminals for receiving consular fees near us. We will solve other issues. So soon, both in Dubai and in the consular section of the Russian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, it will be possible to issue biometric passports for 10 years.
Having experience working in other countries of the Middle East, how do you feel in the United Arab Emirates?
For me, the UAE is a unique phenomenon, a symbol of rapid progress in all areas of the economy and social sphere. For 40 years, the country has become an economically prosperous state with one of the highest living standards in the world, a center of business and trade activity in the region. The first UAE president, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, back in 1966, said: "If the ruler lives for himself and spends the money of the people in his personal interests, then he does not cost anything in the eyes of Allah or in the eyes of people." He has been guided by this principle all his life, and today it cannot but cause respect and admiration.
Accepting the reins of government of the new country, Sheikh Zayed said that he would direct funds from the sale of the main natural wealth - oil - to transform the country and create good for its people. “We will build a society with housing, food, medical care and education,” he promised residents of fishing villages and oases. And it was done!
Please tell me if your assumption of office at the end of January 2012 is connected with preparations for the upcoming March 4 presidential election? What do you as the Consul General of the Russian Federation in the UAE take in the first place to ensure that the elections are successful?
Yes, one of the main tasks of the employees of the Consulate General in Dubai is the worthy holding of parliamentary and presidential elections. A polling station will operate on the territory of the Consulate General, and I want to appeal to all citizens of the Russian Federation located in the UAE in our consular district from the pages of your journal with a request that they come on March 4 and take part in the elections! I am not campaigning for one or another candidate for the President of Russia, but I am for every citizen of the Russian Federation who is outside its borders to apply to the Russian foreign institution - consulate or embassy, and vote.
Let us determine our destiny ourselves! I understand that Sunday is a working day here, but to come to the consulate general for five minutes will not be difficult! Citizens of Russia, come to fulfill your civic duty! We must be active members of society. The state is us!
So I’m holding your magazine “Business Emirates” in my hands and asking myself the question: “If you are a representative of the business community, a shareholder of some company, and you need to attend the meeting where the future development of this company is being decided, can you not go to the meeting ? " Then what is the state so guilty of its citizens? While abroad, knowing that polling stations operate on the territory of the consulate or embassy, do not go to vote for your own future? It depends on us who will become the President, who and how will lead the country. And therefore, I believe that every citizen of Russia is obliged to express his attitude and fulfill his civic duty.
Gocha Levanovich, you have a big family. Tell me, please, what do you like to do in your free time?
My hobbies are books, travels, museum trips and sports. I am interested in history, especially in the Middle East. He even defended his thesis on the theme of Arab-Byzantine relations in the X-XI centuries. I love Arab medieval historiography, poetry, art, in a word I am an Arabist - this is a hobby and my whole life.
In conclusion of our conversation, I would like to say that today several organizations of Russian compatriots work in the UAE. Do you plan to cooperate with them?
Yes, first of all! I will meet, get acquainted and communicate with the citizens of Russia living here. My main task is to protect their rights and interests, and these are not big words! The doors of the Consulate General are always open to resolve all issues that interest our citizens. Only after I get to know our compatriots closer will I meet with our foreign colleagues in the diplomatic corps.
I hope to see a large number of our citizens in the consulate general on the day of the election of the President of Russia on March 4, 2012.
Thank you for the conversation, Gocha Levanovich.
