RUSSIA. Duty free shops that serve diplomats, consuls and their families, as well as employees of international organisations based in Russia are to open in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
A resolution approved by the Cabinet of Ministers on 26 July was published on the following day and will come into force on 27 August, according to Parlamentskaya Gazeta, the official publication of the Federal Assembly (Russian parliament).
Consumers will be able to pay for purchases of wines & spirits, tobacco, confectionery, technology, watches, jewellery and beauty items in rubles, US Dollars or Euros.
Only a Russian company can run the stores, which will be established by an arm of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs together with a co-founder selected through an open tender.
According to the decree, “large quantities” of alcohol for official events will be sold in the duty free shops upon request from diplomatic missions, consulates and other international organisations.
“The idea of opening special stores for diplomats is not new,” Vladimir Dzhabarov, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, told Parliamentary Gazeta.
“Back in Soviet times, my friends worked abroad, and there were shops for diplomats, which had certain discounts. These outlets allow diplomats to freely buy goods that they cannot import or buy in the host country.”
Dzhabarov noted that such stores become an important source for generating foreign currency.
