First Consular Charter of the USSR of 1926

The article investigates the history of adoption of the first Soviet Consular Charter, estimates it as a corresponding to the level of the development of International Law at that time. The Charter improved the rules of the former Russian Code, used the achievements of science in the field of Consular Law and practice of consular activity of other countries, Germany, first of all. The Charter proclaimed guarding and protection of economic and legal interests of the USSR and unitary republics, juridical persons and citizens of the USSR as goals and objectives of consular bodies. Consular offices were to control that all citizens in their districts could have an opportunity to fully use all their rights as guaranteed them by the laws of the country of their stay, international treaties and agreements and international customs. The rules were worked out taking into account the peculiarities of social structure of the Soviet Union. In general, according to its content, the Charter was quite close to common European Consular Laws. The exception was the attitude to the non-professional consul. This institution of Consular Law was cancelled. Soviet consuls could only be regular staff, belong to the state civil service and be citizens of the USSR. Many countries followed this example appointing regular staff consuls even before the Vienna Convention of 1963. With expansion of consular functions in political and cultural areas, subordination of consular activity to the state interests was strengthened. The protection of sovereign rights of the representing country became the main task of consular offices. The USSR was one of the first countries, which introduced the practice of consular departments at diplomatic representations. The Charter mentioned functions in the area of culture for the first time; later it became an obligatory attribute of other national and international acts. The Charter sealed the Soviet Russia's refusal from regimes of capitulations in the countries of non-European culture mentioned in its first Decrees and treaties, it made unnecessary the regulation of the problem on consular jurisdiction in case of war. For the first time in the Soviet Consular Charter consular functions regarding air fleet were mentioned, it was not the subject of regulation in other countries. The article is written with due regard to the achievements of law in 1920s, to the contribution of famous Russian scientists, specialists in International Law. New archive materials, taken out of Russian and foreign record-keeping offices were introduced into the scientific use.

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