Russia exits European anti-torture convention

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — Plastic ties for torture and a broken chair are seen inside a basement of an office building, where prosecutors say 30 people were held two months during a Russian occupation, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kherson, Ukraine, December 10, 2022. REUTERS/Anna Voitenko

MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday signed a law denouncing the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture, according to a government website.

Russia's parliament previously voted to leave the treaty, which Moscow ratified in 1998. 

According to the legislation passed by parliament, Russia's denunciation was in response to the Council of Europe refusing to seat a Russian representative on a committee that oversees the anti-torture convention. 

 (Reporting by Reuters, Writing by Felix Light // REUTERS)