Russia halts anti-crime cooperation with US

MOSCOW - Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev had signed an order to terminate a cooperation agreement with the United States in law and drug enforcement sphere, a government statement said Wednesday.

"The order is initiated by the Russian Foreign Ministry, as the agreement is out of line with current realities and has exhausted its potential," the statement said.

The agreement, signed on Sept 25, 2002, allows Russian law enforcement bodies to receive financial assistance from the US for anti-crime projects, the RIA Novosti news agency said.

The Foreign Ministry has been instructed to notify the US side on the decision, according to the statement.

No immediate comments from the US authorities have been obtained.

The Russian government's move came amid deteriorating ties between the two countries over human rights.

Washington passed the Magnitsky Act in December, introducing a blacklist of Russian officials allegedly linked to the 2009 prison death of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky. 

The State Duma of Russia, in retaliation, passed in the same month a law introducing a ban on Americans adopting Russian orphans and blacklisted US citizens it deemed human rights violators. Moscow also prohibited politically active Russian NGOs from accepting financing from the United States.