04 November 2009 :

the decision to apply a moratorium on capital punishment in Russia was made by Boris Yeltsin and then reaffirmed by Vladimir Putin. It was a political decision, a political act, and one that Russia cannot back out of.
“The debate on the death penalty in Russia is always alive and probably always will be,” Sergio D'Elia, Hands Off Cain Secretary General told ADNKRONOS.
“The decision to impose a moratorium on the death penalty made by Yeltsin and then reaffirmed by Putin was a political decision and was never formalised. However, Russia cannot back out of it without incurring international criticism, taking into account considerations such as Russia’s membership of the Council of Europe.”
"I therefore believe that Russia cannot have second thoughts, despite internal public opinion or politics,” D'Elia concluded.