Tourism and geopolitics: contexts, concepts and significance for the modern hospitality industry

Tourism today has acquired the features of a geopolitical instrument in achieving certain interests by countries, has become one of the geopolitical factors of world politics. However, in the world geopolitical science, the tourism and hospitality industry has not yet found a worthy place and is not being studied from the standpoint of classical geopolitical paradigms, theories, concepts and doctrines. An analysis of the world scientific experience on the geopolitical role of tourism shows that representatives of the academic science of tourism and the socio-geographical sphere of foreign countries are mainly engaged in this issue. At the same time, the research is often focused not on geopolitical issues, but models of tourism management by state authorities, security problems, ecology, forms of the negative impact of tourism on various aspects of the life of communities. The article attempts to comprehend the sphere of tourism as a geopolitical actor of modern international relations (object of study) and consider its integrative forms and geopolitical tools (subject of study). The article presents understanding of the role of tourism and hospitality in external geopolitical relations in the modern world. The concept of "tourist geopolitics" is introduced, its content, the general methodological components of this scientific direction are substantiated. The author Justifies 7 tourismgeopolitical concepts that can be considered formed today: 1) tourism as a soft power, 2) open world (global tourism world-system), 3) tourism as a form of neoliberal colonialism (neocolonialism), 4) tourism worlds and regions as the "world-system", 5) overtourism as the basis of the geopolitical concept of "cultural anti-pluralism", 6) national (insider) tourism as a geopolitical concept of the "closed world", 7) tourism as a showcase of the socio-economic and political structure. Substantiations and characteristics of these concepts are given. In conclusion, the study indicates the issues of tourism geopolitics that are relevant for further research.