MOSCOW, March 2. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has submitted an amendment on recognizing marriage as a union between a man and a woman to Russia’s State Duma (lower house of parliament), Vice Speaker Pyotr Tolstoy told reporters on Monday.
"President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin submitted his proposals to the State Duma on the last day when Constitutional amendments can be submitted and on the first day of Great Lent. They are set forth on 24 pages. For me, the most important is the proposal to enshrine the concept of marriage as a union of a man and a woman in the Constitution, and I am happy that this amendment has been initiated by the head of state," Tolstoy said.
Earlier at a meeting with the working group on amendments to Russia’s Constitution Putin supported the idea to legally enshrine the concept of marriage as a union of a man and a woman. He noted that the idea to uphold traditional family values, including family composition, was correct, but pointed to the need to choose the right wording.
On January 23, Russia’s State Duma (lower house) unanimously voted to approve the bill in the first reading on the constitutional amendments submitted by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The document, in particular, stipulates expanding the powers of the legislature and the Constitutional Court, a ban on high-ranking officials holding residence permits in other countries, limiting the number of presidential terms, placing the supremacy of Russia’s Constitution over international agreements and strengthening the state’s social obligations. The presidential bill also provides for a nationwide public vote on the law on amendments to Russia’s Constitution.
The second reading of the bill is expected to be held in the State Duma on March 10, and the nationwide public vote - on April 22. Putin has stressed more than once that the amendments to Russia’s Constitution would come into force only if they were approved by citizens.