The u.s. warned against magnitsky sanctions

In preparation to fill the position of mayor, several candidates were proposed. Among those candidates is Sergio Sobyanin who is the prime minister’s favorite candidate. Other candidates vying for the same seat are Sergei Shoigu, Alexander Khloponin, Valery Shantsev and Vladimir Kozhin (Odynova 1). The federal investigators said they were going to conduct corruption investigations involving the City Hall officials (Twickel 1).
The United States of America legislators introduced a bill to block visas and assets of some Russians until people responsible for the death of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky were brought to justice. Magnitsky was put under arrest after he accused senior government officials of embezzling government funds. According to the report given, Magnitsky died of health complications in pretrial detention in Moscow. Human rights activists and Magnitsky colleagues say that he was denied adequate medical treatment during his detention. They also claimed that he was subjected to torture conditions. The bill was however not welcomed by some Russia government officials. The Foreign Minister warned the US government against passing the bill saying that it will evoke bitter relations with the US and undermine cooperation between the two nations (Combined Reports 1). The president of Russia Dmitry Medvedev ordered the Prosecutor General’s Office to conduct investigations into Magnitsky’s death. Previous investigations into Magnitsky’s death failed to produce any suspect (The St Petersburg Times 1).