Russian-U.S. adoptions to adhere to Hague convention

Adoptions of Russian children by families in the United States will be carried out only by U.S.-based agencies that meet the Hague Adoption Convention's requirements, a Russian official said on Wednesday. Russia and the United States will sign an adoption treaty that is expected to ensure the safety of Russian children adopted by U.S. families in mid-July. "We will arrange with the American side that only accredited adoption service providers that have a so-called Hague accreditation [eligible to provide adoption services within Hague Adoption Convention] can receive a permit to work on Russia's territory," said Sergey Vitelis of Russia's Education and Science Ministry said. Once the treaty comes into force, adoption agencies will receive accreditation under the new rules, he added. The Hague Adoption Convention came into force in 2008. It is designed to ensure interstate adoptions meet the interests of the child. Russia suspended all U.S. adoptions last year after a Tennessee woman sent her 7-year-old adoptive son back to Russia. He was put on a plane on his own with a note from the woman saying she did not want him as he was "psychotic." Russia's ombudsman for child rights Pavel Astakhov said in January that 17 Russian children have died in the United States as a result of child abuse since adoptions started more than 15 years ago. The latest official figures show that about 60,000 children born in Russia have been adopted by families in the United States.