(AP) -- The lone U.S. adoption agency accredited in Kyrgyzstan is shutting down due to financial troubles, a new setback for about 15 American families battling since 2008 to complete adoptions there.
The North Carolina-based agency, Christian World Adoption, said an array of factors in Kyrgyzstan and elsewhere abroad had boosted its costs and cut its income to the point where it would file for bankruptcy.
Another U.S. adoption agency also is closing, blaming Russia's recently imposed ban on adoptions by Americans. Illinois-based Adoption ARK said its program in Russia had provided more than half of its income.
The two closures highlight the challenges facing many U.S. agencies that specialize in international adoptions. Americans adopted 8,668 foreign children last year, down 62 percent from the peak of 22,884 in 2004.
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