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Laurie Jarvis sent her adopted Russian child there in 2005 when he was 11. Jarvis said the Ranch For Kids gave her son a structured environment with a strict routine that involved classwork and outdoor activities such as horseback riding, giving him the chance to step away from the hectic pace of American culture. The Ranch For Kids is often the last hope for a lot of parents who have nowhere else to turn, she said. "It isn't that parents can't handle their children, it's the exact opposite," Jarvis said. "Parents want to handle their children, so they turn to places where they are able to manage them." Russian officials from the consulate in Seattle have twice visited the ranch before, in 2010 and 2011. Both were friendly visits, Sterkel said. But she was suspicious of Astakhov when he requested the June 28 visit, sensing that he wanted to turn her ranch into a political prop with the U.S.-Russia adoption agreement in the spotlight. She turned down the request. "They came anyway," she said. Sterkel said she believes the real motive behind Astakhov's claims is to bring more lawsuits against adoptive parents. Astakhov earlier this year said Russia is suing Hansen for $2,300 a month for her former adopted child's foster care and "psychological correction." Sterkel said she is concerned that the U.S.-Russian adoption treaty may help Russian officials like Astakhov establish such legal claims and said any parent with an adopted child from Russia should be, too. "If adoptive parents knew what was in this agreement, they'd be freaked out," Sterkel said. "The thought that a foreign government can come and harass me, a property owner, is outrageous. If we don't have sovereignty within our own country to protect us against a foreign government, we don't have anything." A State Department spokesman who would only speak on background said the agency "has assisted the Russian Embassy in Washington with communicating their concerns about the Ranch for Kids with the appropriate authorities in Montana." The agency had no immediate comment on Sterkel's concerns that the agreement would allow Russian officials access to private property with the cooperation of local officials, regardless of parental consent. The adoption agreement must be approved by the Federation Council, which is the upper house of Russia's parliament, and President Vladimir Putin. Both sides must then agree to procedures implementing the agreement before it is implemented.
[Associated
Press;
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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