Russia bans the adoption of its children from countries that allow gender reassignment

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday signed a bill banning the adoption of Russian children by citizens of countries where gender reassignment is legal.

The Kremlin leader also approved a law banning the distribution of material encouraging people not to have children.

The laws, which were approved by both houses of the Russian parliament, follow a series of laws that have oppressed gender minorities and reinforced long-standing norms.

Russian lower house speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, who was among the authors of the new bill, said in a Telegram letter in July that “it is very important to eliminate the possible dangers in the form of gender reassignment that adopted children may face in these countries.”

The adoption ban will apply to at least 15 countries, mostly in Europe, as well as Australia, Argentina and Canada. Acceptance of Russian children are US citizens banned in 2012.

Some bills approved Saturday’s shutdown, which they described as the propaganda of staying childless and impose a fine of up to 5 million rubles (about $50,000). Its supporters argue that public debates against having children are part of a so-called Western effort to weaken Russia by promoting a declining population.

Putin and other senior officials in recent years have increasingly called for the preservation of so-called traditional values ​​as a counterweight to Western liberalism. As Russia’s population shrinks, Putin has made statements encouraging large families and last year urged women to have up to eight children.

Russia last year banned transgender medical procedures and the Supreme Court declared the LGBTQ+ “movement” extremist.

In 2022, Putin signed a law prohibiting the distribution of LGBTQ+ information to people of all ages.expanding the ban issued in 2013 on broadcasting material to children.

Since sending troops into Ukraine in February 2022, the Kremlin leader has repeatedly portrayed the West as “satanic” and accused it of trying to undermine Russia by exporting liberal ideas.

Independent journalists, critics, activists and opposition figures in Russia have come under increasing pressure from the government in recent years, intensifying amid the conflict in Ukraine. Hundreds of non-governmental groups and individuals have been designated as “foreign agents” – a label that implies increased government scrutiny and carries a strong pejorative connotation.