<P> For a very long time, the age of consent in Romania was 14 . The Penal Code of 1864, which followed shortly after the union of the Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia, and was in force between 1865 and 1936, set an age of consent of 14 . Under this code, Article 263 read: "Any assault against decency, whether completed or attempted, without violence, upon the person of a child, either male or female, aged less than 14 years, shall be punished with imprisonment between two and three years ." Article 264 defined "assault against decency with violence", the equivalent of the nowadays crime of rape (although the term "rape" was not used in that code), and stipulated that the maximum penalty should be given if the victim was under 15 years of age . In 1936, a new criminal code came into force . Article 421 read: "The man who has sexual intercourse with a girl under 14 years of age commits the offense of assault against decency without violence, and is punishable by imprisonment between one and three years ." However, if aggravated factors existed (such as pregnancy, a sexually transmitted disease, or committed by a person with a specific relation to the victim, or by several persons) the punishment was increased . With regard to rape (article 419) the victim being under 14 constituted an aggravating factor . After the installation of the communist regime, the code was modified several time, and, in 1969, a new penal code came into effect . Nevertheless, the age of consent of 14 was maintained . Article 198 of the 1969 code read: "Sexual intercourse with a female person who has not attained the age of 14 is punishable by imprisonment of one to five years ." In a case of rape, similarly with the previous code, the victim being under 14 constituted an aggravating factor (Article 197). </P> <P> The late 1990s and the early 21st century saw major modifications to the criminal code, in an effort to modify what was seen as outdated provisions, especially as Romania prepared to enter the EU . As such, homosexuality was decriminalized, the text of several criminal offences was modified by making it gender - neutral, the age of consent was lifted to 15 (applicable to both girls and boys), punishments for several sexual crimes were increased, and the stipulation that a rapist could avoid punishment after rape if he married his victim was abolished . Changes were made through Law no . 140 / 1996, Law No. 197 / 2000, Emergency Ordinance no . 89 / 2001, and Emergency Ordinance no . 143 / 2002 . Nevertheless, the rapid adoption of numerous laws led to poorly drafted and contradictory texts, which have caused difficulty among the jurisprudence and doctrine, and several cases ended to the High Court of Cassation and Justice in order to clarify the interpretation of the law . Finally, a new criminal code entered into force on 1 February 2014 . </P> <P> The age of consent in Russia is 16 . The age of consent changed several times in Russian history: the Criminal Code of RSFSR (Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic) stated "sexual maturity" as the age of consent; when the Criminal Code of Russia was adopted in 1996, the age of consent was proclaimed to be the same regardless of sexual orientation and was set to 16 years old; in 1998 it was lowered to 14 years; and in 2003 it was returned again to 16 years (which is the current age of consent in Russia). Law of early 2012 tightened the consent laws in Articles 134 and 135 considerably . However, only a person over 18 can be charged . Charges are relatively low (up to 4 years of prison) - regardless of gender - and "obscene actions" have even less charges . If the victim is not understanding the nature and consequences of the act (due to their age being under 12 or mental abilities), it will be considered rape and charged much more severely (up to 15 years of prison, or up to 20 if the victim is under 14). </P> <P> 1 . Sexual intercourse committed by a person who has reached the age of eighteen years with a person who has not reached the age of sixteen years - shall be punishable by obligatory labour for a term of up to 480 hours, or by restriction of liberty for a term of up to four years, or by compulsory labour for a term of up to four years with or without deprivation of the right to hold certain posts or to be engaged in a certain activity for a period of up to three years, or by deprivation of liberty for a term of up to four years with or without deprivation of the right to hold certain posts or to be engaged in a certain activity for a period of up to ten years . </P>

What is the legal age of consent in russia