MOSCOW. June 28 (Interfax) - The Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act, approved on Tuesday by the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, carries details that were not present in the edition earlier approved by the House of Representatives, the daily Kommersant writes on Thursday.

"The new edition, coded S1039, allows the U.S. Department of State to apply visa and financial sanctions against government executives in Russia and in all countries with a record of human rights abuses," the newspaper said, citing its own sources in the U.S. Senate.

The Senate edition of the bill differs from the one adopted by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on June 7, which says specifically that the bill has been adopted in connection with human rights abuses in Russia and cannot be applied to other states.

Now both houses need to negotiate a single edition, which will be put to vote and then submitted to the president for signing.

The newspaper cites an author of the bill, Senator Benjamin Cardin, as saying that the bill emerged after Sergei Magnitsky's tragic death, but, clearly, must also apply to other countries.

The U.S. administration has made one more serious change to the bill, the Kommersant writes, and the new version gives it the right not to disclose the names on the Magnitsky list if national security interests are involved.

The previous edition obliged the Department of State and the Department of the Treasury to publish the list of Russian officials who are allegedly involved in Sergei Magnitsky's death and who bear responsibility for committing out-of-court killings, torture and other serious human rights abuses. The White House has decided that since none of the persons on the list has been found guilty in court, the announcement of their names would violate the
presumption of innocence principle.

Cardin did not say exactly when the final edition of the bill will be put to vote in the Senate, but firmly pledged to link it with the abolition of the Jackson-Vanik amendment, the newspaper said. Both bills will be adopted in a package, he was quoted as saying.

The newspaper's source in the Russian government explained that, "the bill's extension to other countries does not make it acceptable for Russia."

"All our attempts to prevent the Jackson-Vanik amendment's replacement by the Magnitsky bill have been unsuccessful. There are signs suggesting that such a replacement is likely soon. If this happens, Russian-American relations will be spoiled," the source said.

Reports said earlier that the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations approved the Magnitsky bill on Tuesday, which imposes visa and financial sanctions on Russian officials.

Keywords: U.S.-Russian Relations - Russia, Assassinations, Beatings, Prison Deaths - Russian News - Russia

MOSCOW. June 28 (Interfax) - The Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act, approved on Tuesday by the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, carries details that were not present in the edition earlier approved by the House of Representatives, the daily Kommersant writes on Thursday.

"The new edition, coded S1039, allows the U.S. Department of State to apply visa and financial sanctions against government executives in Russia and in all countries with a record of human rights abuses," the newspaper said, citing its own sources in the U.S. Senate.

The Senate edition of the bill differs from the one adopted by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on June 7, which says specifically that the bill has been adopted in connection with human rights abuses in Russia and cannot be applied to other states.

Now both houses need to negotiate a single edition, which will be put to vote and then submitted to the president for signing.

The newspaper cites an author of the bill, Senator Benjamin Cardin, as saying that the bill emerged after Sergei Magnitsky's tragic death, but, clearly, must also apply to other countries.

The U.S. administration has made one more serious change to the bill, the Kommersant writes, and the new version gives it the right not to disclose the names on the Magnitsky list if national security interests are involved.

The previous edition obliged the Department of State and the Department of the Treasury to publish the list of Russian officials who are allegedly involved in Sergei Magnitsky's death and who bear responsibility for committing out-of-court killings, torture and other serious human rights abuses. The White House has decided that since none of the persons on the list has been found guilty in court, the announcement of their names would violate the
presumption of innocence principle.

Cardin did not say exactly when the final edition of the bill will be put to vote in the Senate, but firmly pledged to link it with the abolition of the Jackson-Vanik amendment, the newspaper said. Both bills will be adopted in a package, he was quoted as saying.

The newspaper's source in the Russian government explained that, "the bill's extension to other countries does not make it acceptable for Russia."

"All our attempts to prevent the Jackson-Vanik amendment's replacement by the Magnitsky bill have been unsuccessful. There are signs suggesting that such a replacement is likely soon. If this happens, Russian-American relations will be spoiled," the source said.

Reports said earlier that the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations approved the Magnitsky bill on Tuesday, which imposes visa and financial sanctions on Russian officials.