The first meeting between John F. Kerry as the new secretary of state and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov could be dominated this week by the emotional issue of Americans adopting Russian children, after an explosive exchange between Russian lawmakers and the U.S. ambassador in Moscow.
U.S. and Russian diplomats are trying to defuse the tension before Mr. Kerry and Mr. Lavrov hold talks Tuesday in Berlin.
Members of Russia’s parliament and children’s rights advocates in Moscow last week taunted Ambassador Michael McFaul after he declined to appear before a Russian legislative committee to discuss the progress of a U.S. investigation into the January death of a 3-year-old Russian boy adopted by an American woman in Texas.
Mr. McFaul explained on the U.S. Embassy website that American ambassadors do not testify before foreign legislatures.
He offered to meet with any Russian lawmaker concerned about the investigation into the death of Max Shatto near Odessa, Texas, on Jan. 21 or the deaths of 20 other Russian children adopted by U.S. families over the past two decades. He also noted that Americans have adopted more than 60,000 Russian children who are living in the U.S.
Top members of the Duma, the lower house of parliament, pounced on his position.
“By refusing to come to the state Duma to discuss the deaths of our children, the U.S. ambassador has shown that he is not ready for a serious dialogue on this problem,” said Alexei Pushkov, chairman of the foreign affairs committee.
Irina Yarovaya, chairwoman of the security committee, issued a sarcastic statement. “Apparently he believes it is undemocratic to acknowledge inaction of the U.S. authorities over the violence and abuse of small children,” she said on the Duma’s website.
Pavel Astakhov, a children’s right advocate, accused the American mother of “killing” the adopted Russian boy.
A spokesman for President Vladimir Putin tried to calm the diplomatic dispute, which has been growing since December when Russia outlawed further U.S. adoptions after Washington imposed sanctions on some Russian officials suspected of human rights abuses.
“I think it’s necessary to temper emotions a bit,” spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday.
In his statement on the U.S. Embassy website, Mr. McFaul noted that U.S. officials and Russian diplomats in Texas and Washington are in regular contact over the investigation. He also expressed frustration over the reaction in the Duma and in the Russian media.
“It is time for sensational exploitations of human tragedy to end and for professional work between our two countries to grow on this issue and many others,” he said.
Diplomatic traffic
Foreign visitors in Washington this week include:
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James Morrison joined the The Washington Times in 1983 as a local reporter covering Alexandria, Va. A year later, he was assigned to open a Times bureau in Canada. From 1987 to 1989, Mr. Morrison was The Washington Times reporter in London, covering Britain, Western Europe and NATO issues. After returning to Washington, he served as an assistant foreign editor ...
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