Finland refuses to sign family, civil affairs agr with Russia.

SOCHI, July 17 (Itar-Tass) -- Finland refused to sign with Russia an
agreement on assistance and cooperation in family and civil affairs,
Russia's ombudsman Pavel Astakhov told reporters following his working
meeting with Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev in Sochi.
"It was practically an official refusal, which we got via the foreign
ministry, to sign a bilateral agreement on assistance and cooperation in
family and civil affairs," he said.
This is a "serious international and legal mistake," Astakhov added.
The agreement was necessary and its necessity was caused by the
conflicts in mixed families. It is not correct to make decisions only on
the basis of national legislations, which, like it is in Finland, may
allow to "withdraw a child without any grounds and without a court
decision," he said.
Finland and Russia are participants in the same Convention on children'
s rights, which stipulates the necessity of expanding bilateral
cooperation, Astakhov said.
Russia suggests to Finland, like it does to France, organising a
commission to unite representatives of justice and foreign ministries and
Russia's ministry of education and the ombudsman.
Astakhov commented on the agreement with the United States on adoption
and acknowledged certain delay there. The next round of the talks is due
in September.
Russia plans to have similar agreements with France, and later on with
the United Kingdom, Spain and Finland.
Ireland made a decision to stop adopting children from Russia, thus
having "deprived itself sufficiently," Astakhov said.

-0-kar