Talks in Moscow on U.S. adoptions of Russian children have been postponed because the volcanic ash cloud above Europe prevented the U.S. delegation from traveling, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Monday.
"The visit has been postponed for technical reasons," Igor Lyakin-Frolov said, adding that it was due to the ash that has paralyzed air travel in much of Europe since Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano started erupting last week.
The delegation headed by Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs Michael Kirby was to leave for Moscow past weekend.
"The dates of the visit will be agreed through diplomatic channels," Lyakin-Frolov said, adding that talks would continue as it was in both sides' interest to come to an agreement regulating U.S. adoptions of Russian children.
The discussions follow the latest incident involving a Russian child adopted in the United States. Artyom Savelyev, adopted just six months ago, was put on a one-way flight to Russia earlier this month with a note from his U.S. adoptive mother claiming the 7-year-old was "psychopathic."
The Russian Foreign Ministry said earlier on Monday that the agreement should "precisely regulate the process of adoption and include efficient mechanisms to control the living conditions of children adopted from Russia and ensure their legal protection."
Russia is one of the largest sources of adoptions to the United States, accounting for about 10% of foreign adoptions, but the issue has become controversial in Russia in recent years following numerous incidents involving the mistreatment of Russian adopted children in the United States.
MOSCOW, April 19 (RIA Novosti)
