Abortion in Russia Abortion in Russia Abortion in Russia is legal as an elective procedure up to the 12th week of pregnancy, and in special circumstances at later stages. In 1920, Russian Soviet Republic became the first country in the world to allow abortion in all circumstances, but over the course of the 20th century, the legality of abortion changed more than once, with a ban being enacted again from 1936 to 1955. Russia had the highest number of abortions per woman of child-bearing age in the world according to UN data as of 2010. In terms of the total number, in 2009
Abortion in the United States by state after it became public law. The Supreme Court upheld the nationwide ban on the procedure in the case "Gonzales v. Carhart" on April 18, 2007. The 5-4 ruling said the "Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act" does not conflict with previous Court decisions regarding abortion. The decision marked the first time the court allowed a ban on any type of abortion since 1973. The swing vote, which came from moderate justice Anthony Kennedy, was joined by Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, and the two recent appointees, Samuel Alito and Chief Justice John Roberts. The following states have or had initiatives regarding