Russia to bar foreigners from using its surrogate mothers

Russia will soon adopt a law barring foreigners from using Russian surrogate mothers, Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the lower house of parliament said on Sunday, the nation's Mother's Day. Paid surrogacy is legal in Russia, but the practice has been criticised by religious groups as commercialising the birth of children. “Everything must be done to protect children by prohibiting foreigners from using the surrogacy service,” Volodin said on the Telegram messaging app. “We will make this decision at the beginning of December.” He said some 45,000 babies born by surrogate mothers have been taken abroad in the past few years. “Child trafficking is unacceptable,” he added. — reuters