The growing importance of the new Russia in the international context and in particular in its relations with the European Union, as well as the development of bilateral relations with our country in recent years, both in the Political as in economic and cultural, they have led to a sharp increase in the number of Russian tourists and visitors to our country, as well as from Spanish visitors to Russia. The number of Russian tourists has reached 200,000 annually, with the extraordinary increase in activity and workload that this entails, which makes it essential to strengthen our consular capacity in Russia, with the opening of a second Consulate General in the Russian Federation. When choosing the location of this second Consulate General, several factors have been taken into account: the effective demand for visas from the Russian side; the importance of the city for Spanish tourism and the relevance that the city has in the Russian context from the economic, political and cultural point of view. All these reasons have led to St. Petersburg being the chosen city. It is a port, and the second city of Russia with 5 million inhabitants, as well as the largest in the Baltic; it is very significant from the political and economic point of view, being the headquarters of important companies of mechanical industry, petrochemicals and financial institutions; it is the undisputed cultural capital of Russia, making it the favorite goal of Spanish tourism. In its virtue, in accordance with the provisions of Article 21 of Royal Decree 632/1987 of 8 May, and after the approval of the Minister of Public Administrations, I have had the right to have:

First. -A Consular Office is created in St. Petersburg, with a category of Consulate General, dependent on the Permanent Diplomatic Mission of Spain in the Russian Federation and with jurisdiction in the regions of Leningrad, whose capital is St. Petersburg, Murmansk, Carelia, Novgorod, Pskov, Kalingrad, and the territory of the Republic of Belarus.

Second. The Consular Office will have a Chief who will have the category of Consul General, and with the personnel who will need to work, whose number and characteristics will be those of the corresponding relation of jobs.

Third. This Order shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Gazette of the State.

Madrid, 19 January 2006.

MORATINOS CUYAUBE