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U.S. debates how severely to penalize Russia in human rights spat
In a controversy underscoring continued stresses in U.S.-Russia relations, Obama administration officials are debating how many Russian officials to ban from the United States under a new law meant to penalize Moscow for alleged human rights abuses.
The debate’s outcome, expected in about two weeks, is likely to illustrate how President Barack Obama will handle what critics say is a crackdown on dissent in Russia and set the tone for Washington-Moscow relations in the president’s second term.
The new law is named for Russian whistleblower Sergei Magnitsky, a 37-year-old anti-corruption lawyer who died in his jail cell in 2009. It requires the United States to deny visas and freeze the U.S. financial assets of Russians linked to the case, or to other alleged violations of human rights in Russia.
The act was passed in December as part of a broader bill to expand U.S. trade with Russia, and Obama signed it December 14. But the White House was never keen on the rights legislation, arguing that it was unnecessary because Washington had imposed visa restrictions on some Russians thought to have played a role in Magnitsky’s death. The United States has declined to name those people.
The Magnitsky Act says the president must publish by mid-April the list of accused human rights abusers – or explain to Congress why their names can’t be published. The reasons for not publishing must be tied to national security.
U.S. officials said there are differences within the Obama administration over what kind of list to produce – short or long – or whether to even produce two lists, one for the visa bans and another for the asset freezes.
“The difference is essentially between those who don’t want to piss off the Russian government any more than we absolutely have to, and those who don’t want to piss off Congress any more than we have to,” a State Department official said on condition of anonymity.
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Russian delegation hits Washington to lobby against “Magnitsky” sanctions
The Russians are coming to Washington; in fact, they are already here. But they aren’t happy.
A Russian parliamentary delegation is in the U.S. capital to lobby American lawmakers against a bill sanctioning Russian officials implicated in human rights abuses — a move Moscow considers offensive outside interference in its affairs.
After some meetings on Capitol Hill, the four-man Russian delegation on Wednesday did not have a lot of progress to report from their lobbying against the “Magnitsky bill,” named after Sergei Magnitsky, an anti-corruption Russian lawyer who died in 2009 after a year in Russian jails.
But they had a warning.
“We really don’t want that the U.S. Congress adopts this bill that has the potential to deteriorate U.S.-Russia relations for years or even for decades to come. It will become a real irritant in U.S.-Russia relations,” delegation member Vitaly Malkin told reporters, speaking through a translator at the Russian embassy.
A Russian parliamentary investigation into the Magnitsky case is underway, the group said, displaying a dossier with what they said were the preliminary findings.
The Magnitsky bill pending in Congress would require the United States to deny visas and freeze the assets of Russians linked to Magnitsky’s death, as well as those of other human rights abusers in Russia. The Senate version, sponsored by Democrat Ben Cardin, would extend the sanctions to human rights abusers anywhere in the world.
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Russia may restrict Americans over rights dispute
Russian President Vladimir Putin called the controversial death of an anti-corruption lawyer in Russia a tragedy, but said Moscow would retaliate if the U.S. Congress used the case to penalize Russians for alleged human rights abuses.
Speaking to reporters at the end of the Group of 20 summit in Mexico on Tuesday, Putin said Russia did not think the matter prompted by the 2009 death of Sergei Magnitsky, 37, deserved the attention it was getting in Washington.
A U.S. Senate committee plans to vote next week on a bipartisan proposal to deny visas and freeze assets of Russians linked to Magnitsky’s death after he spent a year in Russian jails.
Magnitsky worked for the equity fund Hermitage Capital in Moscow and his case spooked investors and blackened the nation’s image abroad.
The Senate version would also include human rights abusers “anywhere in the world,” a provision some say could keep Russia from feeling singled out but would also be difficult to implement.
A House of Representatives committee approved its own version this month.
Putin said Russia would reciprocate if the full Congress were to act.
"As far as this law linked to Magnitsky's tragedy is concerned, if it will be passed, so be it," Putin said.
"We do not think that it (situation around Magnitsky) deserves such an attention from the Congress, but if there will be restrictions on entry to (the) U.S. for some Russian citizens, then there will be restrictions for entry to Russia for some Americans," he said. "I do not know who needs it and why, but if it happens it happens. The choice is not ours."
Magnitsky was jailed in Russia in 2008 on charges of tax evasion and fraud. His colleagues say those were fabricated by police investigators whom he had accused of stealing $230 million from the state through fraudulent tax returns.
The Kremlin's own human rights council said last year that he was probably beaten to death.
Putin and Obama discussed the Magnitsky bill on Monday at the Mexico summit, U.S. envoy to Russia Michael McFaul said.
The Obama administration says it understands concerns of the bill's sponsors about rights abuses. But it says the bill is unnecessary.
The White House is anxious to keep the push for sanctions on rights abusers in Russia from slowing efforts to get congressional approval of "permanent normal trade relations" with Moscow this year.
Those efforts are also under threat by U.S. lawmakers unhappy with Russia's support for the Syrian government in its bloody crackdown on a revolt against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. hairy girl unshaven girl https://zp-pdl.com/fast-and-easy-payday-loans-online.php https://zp-pdl.com/emergency-payday-loans.php hairy women
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US Senate panel delays vote on “Magnitsky” sanctions on Russia
A Senate panel on Tuesday postponed by one week a vote on a measure to penalize Russian officials for human rights abuses, a bipartisan bill opposed by Russia and facing resistance from the Obama administration.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee had been scheduled to vote on the “Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act” at a meeting on Tuesday afternoon. But the bill was taken off the agenda after Democratic Senator Jim Webb requested a delay.
“Senator Webb supports the premise of the Magnitsky Act, but has concerns about some of the language in the current draft and has asked that the bill be held over so that he can more closely examine it,” Webb’s spokesman, Will Jenkins, said. He gave no details.
Democratic Senator John Kerry, the committee chairman, said the bill would be taken up at the panel’s next business meeting on June 26.
The legislation is named for a 37-year-old anti-corruption lawyer who worked for the equity fund Hermitage Capital in Moscow. His 2009 death after a year in Russian jails spooked investors and blackened Russia’s image abroad.
The measure would require the United States to deny visas and freeze the assets of Russians linked to Magnitsky’s death, as well as those of other human rights abusers in Russia. It passed a House of Representatives committee this month, but no action has been taken in the Senate.
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US Senate’s ‘Magnitsky’ bill could keep names secret
Reuters
A draft proposal to penalize Russian officials for human rights abuses has been rewritten in the Senate to let the U.S. government keep secret some names on the list of abusers, congressional aides said on Monday.
The reworked Senate version, which could still change, upset some supporters of the legislation to create what is known as the “Magnitsky list.” They said that keeping part of the proposed list secret would neuter the effect of the bill, which is aimed at exposing human rights violators in Russia.
The House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee this month approved the “Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act,” named for a 37-year-old anti-corruption lawyer who worked for the equity fund Hermitage Capital. His 2009 death after a year in Russian jails spooked investors and blackened Russia’s image abroad.
The measure would require the United States to deny visas and freeze the U.S. assets of Russians linked to Magnitsky’s death. The bill as originally written in both the House and Senate would make public the list of offenders and broaden it to include other abusers of human rights in Russia.
A reworked draft circulating in the Senate and obtained by Reuters would allow the list to “contain a classified annex if the Secretary (of State) determines that it is necessary for the national security interests of the United States to do so.”
William Browder, CEO of Hermitage Capital, told Reuters he suspected the “classified annex” provision had been inserted at the request of the Obama administration to water down the bill and so avoid offending the Russian government, which opposes the measure.
“The administration is trying to gut the bill, because they’ve been against it from the start. They are trying to make nice with the Russians,” Browder said in a phone conversation from London.
The administration of President Barack Obama argues the bill is unnecessary because the administration has already imposed visa restrictions on some Russians believed to have been involved in Magnitsky’s death. But it has kept their names quiet.
Backers of the Magnitsky bill want the list of human rights violators made public both to shame those on the list and to keep them from doing business with U.S. financial institutions.
The White House is also anxious to keep the push for sanctions on human rights abusers in Russia from slowing down efforts to get congressional approval allowing “permanent normal trade relations” with Russia this year.
Senator Ben Cardin, a Democrat, is the main sponsor of the Magnitsky bill in the Senate, but there was no comment from his office on the draft bill on Monday. The legislation was scheduled to have a vote on Tuesday in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
However, Senate aides said at least one member of the committee may request on Tuesday that the vote be postponed until the committee’s next business meeting, but no date for that has been set.
A Senate Republican aide said there is concern that having part of the list be classified would make steps like the asset freeze unenforceable.
“How can an individual’s assets be frozen, if his or her name cannot be disclosed to financial institutions?” the aide asked. Republicans would try to amend the bill to at least require a justification to Congress for each person put on the classified list, the aide said.
Magnitsky was jailed in 2008 on charges of tax evasion and fraud. His colleagues say these were fabricated by police investigators whom he had accused of stealing $230 million from the state through fraudulent tax returns. The Kremlin’s own human rights council said in 2011 that he was probably beaten to death. займ на карту срочно без отказа hairy women https://zp-pdl.com https://zp-pdl.com/apply-for-payday-loan-online.php онлайн займы
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House panel backs “Magnitsky” sanctions on Russia
A congressional committee unanimously approved on Thursday a measure to penalize Russian officials for human rights abuses, adding to tensions with Moscow and complicating White House efforts to pass Russian trade legislation in the coming months.
The House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee approved on a voice vote the “Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act,” named for a 37-year-old anti-corruption lawyer who worked for the equity fund Hermitage Capital. His 2009 death after a year in Russian jails spooked investors and blackened Russia’s image abroad.
The measure has bipartisan support among lawmakers but its prospects for passage in Congress remain uncertain.
The measure would require the United States to deny visas and freeze the assets of Russians linked to Magnitsky’s death. The Obama administration already has imposed visa restrictions on some Russians believed to have been involved in Magnitsky’s death, but kept their names quiet.
The bill would make public the list of alleged offenders, broaden it to include other abusers of human rights in Russia and prohibit them from doing their banking in U.S. institutions.
Russian officials have warned that the bill would harm American-Russian relations, and U.S. business groups say it could hurt their interests in Russia.
The White House worries the bill will get embroiled in President Barack Obama’s efforts to reap the trade benefits of Russia’s looming entry into the World Trade Organization, a key achievement of the “reset” in U.S.-Russia ties of recent years.
Approval by the panel was just the first step in advancing the Magnitsky bill by Democratic Representative Jim McGovern through the Republican-controlled House. Before it can get a vote of the full House, two more committees must approve it or waive jurisdiction. The Democratic-controlled Senate has not acted on a similar bill by Senator Ben Cardin, a Democrat.
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Russian envoy warns on U.S. human rights bill
Reuters
By Doug Palmer and Susan Cornwell
WASHINGTON | Mon Apr 23, 2012 11:45pm BST
Russia’s ambassador to the United States warned that proposed U.S. legislation to punish Russian officials involved in human rights abuses could a have significant negative impact on U.S.-Russian relations.
Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak said the U.S. Congress should not tie the so-called Sergei Magnitsky bill to an expected vote this year on establishing “permanent normal trade relations” between the two countries.
“If that is taken to an extreme, it’ll be a significant negative impact on Russian-Americans relations,” Kislyak told reporters. “We are a serious country and we do not want to be told what to do within the limits of Russian law.”
The 2009 death of the 37-year-old Magnitsky, who worked for equity fund Hermitage Capital and died after a year in Russian jails, spooked investors and tarnished Russia’s image.
Before his arrest, Magnitsky had testified against Russian interior ministry officials during a tax evasion case against Hermitage. The Kremlin human rights council says he was probably beaten to death.
The case has heightened concerns in Congress about human rights conditions in Russia and made it even harder for the White House to persuade lawmakers to lift a Cold War-era trade provision known as the Jackson-Vanik amendment.
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US Senate panel may vote on Russian human rights bill
Human rights legislation named after an anti-graft lawyer who died in a Russian jail is likely to be considered by a U.S. Senate committee this spring, the panel’s chairman Senator John Kerry said on Tuesday.
The Sergei Magnitsky bill would require the United States to deny visas and freeze the assets of Russians or others with links to his detention and death, as well as those who commit human rights violations against other whistle-blowers like him.
The 2009 death of the 37-year-old Magnitsky, who worked for equity fund Hermitage Capital and died after a year in Russian jails, spooked investors and tarnished Russia’s image. The Kremlin human rights council says he was probably beaten to death.
Before his arrest, he had testified against Russian interior ministry officials during a tax evasion case against Hermitage.
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