The Russian parliament will again discuss ratification of an additional protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights on Friday, more than three years after it rejected the document.

Protocol 14 to the Convention, designed to simplify and speed up litigation in the European Court of Human Rights has been signed and ratified by all Council of Europe member states except Russia. The protocol will only come into force once it has been ratified by all member-countries.

"We will again submit for the ratification of Protocol 14 concerning the European Court of Human Rights," said Boris Gryzlov, speaker of the lower chamber of the Russian parliament.

The protocol was introduced to help the Court cope with the growing influx of complaints and to speed up investigations and trials, some of which continue for up to 10 years.

The State Duma, dominated by the Kremlin-backed United Russia party, declined to ratify the protocol in December 2006 on the grounds that some of its provisions contradicted Russian legislation.

MOSCOW, January 12 (RIA Novosti)