Russian lawmakers endorse bill to ban adoptions by gender-transition countries

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s upper house of parliament on Wednesday endorsed a bill banning adoption of Russian children by citizens of countries where gender transitioning is legal.

The Federation Council also approved bills that outlaw the spread of material that encourages people not to have children.

The bills, which have previously been approved by the lower house, will now go to President Vladimir Putin for signing into law. They follow a series of laws that have suppressed sexual minorities and bolstered longstanding conventional values.

Lower house speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, who was among the new bill's authors, noted that “it is extremely important to eliminate possible dangers in the form of gender reassignment that adopted children may face in these countries.”