Putin Wants to Stop Foreign Gay Couples From Adopting Russian Children

Russian president Vladimir Putin wants to ban the adoption of orphans by foreign same-sex couples.

According to the website RT, the government and the Supreme Court have been ordered to propose amendments to the law as soon as July 1. Tension surrounding the issue of same-sex couples adopting has increased dramatically in the country since the French National Assembly approved a bill in mid-February that would legalize marriage and adoption by same-sex couples. It was shortly thereafter that Russian children's rights ombudsman Pavel Astakhov declared he would work toward a future in which Russian orphans would be placed only with heterosexual couples.

Russian gay rights activist Nikolay Alekseyev doesn't believe Astakhov and Putin's idea will be successful. "It's purely a political move aimed to show that the government is consistent in its decisions," he told Russian media.

Alekseyev's assumption that Putin's order is nothing more than political lip service appears to be supported by the fact that any change in Russia's adoption policy would likely be made by the Ministry of Education and, according to Russian media reports, the ministry has not yet received instructions on the matter.