International adoptions to U.S. declining

NEW YORK, Aug. 13 (UPI) -- The number of international adoptions bringing children into the United States is on the decline thanks to domestic efforts abroad, officials say.

Michele Bond, the U.S. State Department's deputy assistant secretary for Overseas Citizen Services, said countries like Russia and China have begun limiting such overseas adoptions in order to promote increased domestic adoptions, USA Today said Wednesday.

"This is very much a time of transition," Bond said of changing international adoption policies.

Prospective parents in the United States are also having a harder time adopting overseas children due to Hague Adoption Convention policies, officials say. The policies require countries to determine if such individuals are fit to adopt and if the targeted children have not been kidnapped.

Joint Council on International Children's Services president Tom DiFilipo said while such policies reduce international adoptions, they offer both sides in the matter added protection.

"It adds a full layer of protection to children, adoptive parents and birth parents," the adoption advocacy official told USA Today.