Stop the Untouchables. Justice for Sergei Magnitsky.

Kremlin’s Omerta Blocks Justice for Magnitsky

The Moscow Times

After the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee unanimously approved the Magnitsky Act on Tuesday, the bill is one step closer to becoming law.

Unlike the House version of the act, which targets only suspected and convicted Russian criminals, the Senate’s version effectively de-­emphasizes Russia by applying visa restrictions and asset freezes to suspected and convicted criminals all over the world.

It was almost as if the Senate was trying to say to President Putin: “Nothing personal, Vladimir. We are against all criminals, not just Russian ones.”

But this seeming nod to Russia was lost on Putin. During the Group of 20 summit last week, he said once again that if the bill becomes law, Russia would apply symmetrical measures against Americans. Essentially, he was saying Russia would “retaliate,” to pull an old Cold War term out of the closet.

But presumably Russian authorities would ban convicted and suspected U.S. criminals from entering Russia anyway, regardless of the Magnitsky Act. Let’s hope that Russia’s “retaliation” doesn’t mean it will pick Americans at random — innocent businessmen, journalists or academics who are working in Russia or who want to work there — just to show Washington that it can make its own “symmetrical” blacklist if push comes to shove.

Amid all the bluster and feigned indignation around the Magnitsky Act, Putin is conveniently ignoring the fact that there has been a “Magnitsky list” of sorts used by both the United States and Russia for decades. Washington has always denied visas to convicted and suspected criminals.