US/Russia Bilateral Agreement Update

We have learned that the US and Russian officials are meeting this week to review the Bilateral Agreement again. We anticipate that there will be no complications or opposition. On the Russian side, once the Agreement is complete, it will be sent for review/approval to several Ministry offices as well as to the Prosecutor General’s Office in Moscow. Then it will go before the Russian Duma (Parliament), where it will hopefully be signed into law. It is believed that this could be finalized by the end of the year. At this point, we know only one of the terms of the agreement: There will be no more independent adoptions allowed in Russia. Adoptions may only be completed by agencies accredited in Russia (our agency is one of them).

We do have some potentially good news from our agency: our region has indicated the possibility of a first trip invitation in August or September for one of the four families currently waiting to travel. That means we have a 25% chance of still traveling this summer! Our region had previously been on hold since April when the Russian goverment decided to pursue an agreement with the US before continuing with international adoptions. We remain hopeful and ask that you continue to keep us in your prayers as we wait!