Reuters: Politics: Senate panel delays vote on "Magnitsky" sanctions on Russia

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Senate panel delays vote on "Magnitsky" sanctions on Russia Jun 19th 2012, 17:23 WASHINGTON | Tue Jun 19, 2012 1:23pm EDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Senate panel on Tuesday postponed a vote on a measure to penalize Russian officials for human rights abuses, a bipartisan bill opposed by Russia and facing resistance from the Obama administration. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee had been scheduled to vote on the "Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act" at a meeting on Tuesday afternoon. But the bill was taken off the agenda after a senator requested a delay, committee aides said, without naming the senator. Under the committee's rules, this means the bill will be taken up at the panel's next business meeting, but a date for that meeting has not been set. "As a result of this request, and consistent with longstanding committee practice regarding holdovers, there will not be a vote on the Magnitsky bill at today's business meeting," a committee spokeswoman said. The bill is named for a 37-year-old anti-corruption lawyer who worked for the equity fund Hermitage Capital in Moscow. His 2009 death after a year in Russian jails spooked investors and blackened Russia's image abroad. The measure would require the United States to deny visas and freeze the assets of Russians linked to Magnitsky's death, as well as those of other human rights abusers in Russia. It passed a House of Representatives committee this month, but no action has been taken in the Senate. Russia has warned that it will retaliate against the United States if the bill goes through. Changes have been made in the Senate version that would water down the bill at the request of the administration of President Barack Obama, Senate aides told Reuters. These changes included letting the U.S. government keep secret some names on the list of abusers. The Senate version also would broaden the list to include abusers of human rights "anywhere in the world," a provision that some say could keep Russia from feeling singled out, but would also be difficult to implement. The Obama administration says it understands the concerns of the bill's sponsors about rights abuses. However, it says the bill is unnecessary as the administration has already imposed visa restrictions on some Russians thought to have been involved in Magnitsky's death, but it has kept their names quiet. The White House is anxious to keep the push for sanctions on rights abusers in Russia from slowing down efforts to get congressional approval of "permanent normal trade relations" with Russia this year. Those efforts are also under threat by lawmakers worried about Russia's support for the Syrian government in its bloody crackdown on a revolt against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. (Reporting By Susan Cornwell; Editing by David Brunnstrom) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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