Stop the Untouchables. Justice for Sergei Magnitsky.

U.S.-Russia Relations Continue To Falter With Prosecution Of Dead Man

NPR

Russia is prosecuting a dead man, corruption whistle-blower Sergei Magnitsky, in a case that has severely complicated U.S.-Russia relations. Congress passed a bill that will punish anyone involved in the Magnitsky case and other major human rights violators in Russia. The Russian parliament responded by banning adoptions by American families of Russian children. It is against this backdrop that the new Secretary of State John Kerry finds himself searching for ways to reset relations once again.

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Next week, Secretary of State John Kerry sets off on his first official trip. He’ll head to both Europe and the Middle East. He will not be visiting Russia but aides say he might meet his Russian counterparts somewhere on the trip.

They have a lot to talk about, from the crisis in Syria to a dispute over adoptions, as NPR’s Michele Kelemen reports.

MICHELE KELEMEN, BYLINE: There are many signs that U.S./Russian relations are in the tank. One example is playing out in a Russian courtroom, where a dead man is going on trial next month.

NIKOLAI GOROKHOV: (Foreign language spoken)

KELEMEN: This is Nikolai Gorokhov, a lawyer representing the family of Sergei Magnitsky, the corruption whistle-blower who died in a Russian prison three years ago.