… Several years ago I had a chance to visit “Kurchatovsky”. I was struck by the breadth of the research, the qualification and the talent of the scientists. Their work in the field of medical radiology then seemed something fantastic. I thought: it would be nice to create something similar in Belarus! It came true: a “clone” of the world-famous scientific center appeared in Minsk. State Secretary of the Union State Dmitry Mezentsev, Russian Ambassador to Belarus Boris Gryzlov, Head of Corresponding Member of SIC Mikhail Kovalchuk, Chairman of the Presidium of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus Vladimir Gusakov took part in the solemn ceremony of this occasion.
It’s not about competition, it’s about creating a unified research infrastructure
- The representative office will have about six laboratories, – said Mikhail Kovalchuk. – They reflect the strategic development priorities approved by the President of Russia, which largely coincide with the priorities of the Republic of Belarus and with what the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus is doing. We are great at complementing each other.
What will be the joint efforts? First, microelectronics. According to Mikhail Kovalchuk, this industry is highly developed in Belarus, especially the machine-building base. Institutes of this profile have also been merged into the Kurchatov Institute, and now the two countries will have a common research base. The second direction is the agricultural sector, genetics as the basis of selection. It will grow very quickly. The third is materials science in the broadest sense. “Belarusian science is doing a lot of extremely important things for space, which we are not doing,” said Mikhail Kovalchuk. They will also jointly develop nuclear technologies, including nuclear medicine. Added to this are cognitive and socio-humanitarian research, which is extremely important given the impact of the digital sphere on mental health, and the study of historical heritage.
In particular, with the help of the National Research Center “Kurchatov Institute”, it is planned to resume in Belarus the development of unique mobile nuclear power plants “Pamir”, created in Soviet times at the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus for Far North Russia. They are still in demand today. As noted by Vladimir Gusakov, the relevant documentation was preserved.
It is also expected to enhance interaction between scientists from the two countries in the field of basic nuclear research. To this end, a representative delegation of Belarusian scientists headed by Vladimir Gusakov visited the St. Petersburg branch of the Kurchatov Institute last year and got acquainted with the PIK research reactor operating in Gatchina. A Belarusian-Russian agreement should now be signed, which will allow Belarusian specialists to work in this scientific mega-installation.
“According to the instructions of the Presidents of Belarus and Russia, we are restoring a single Union State science and technology landscape,” Mikhail Kovalchuk stressed. – In order to exclude excessive competition, we have prepared a draft strategy for the scientific and technological development of the Union State in terms of creating a unified research infrastructure.
The representative office of the “Kurchatov Institute” was opened on the site of one of the largest of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, the Physico-Technical Institute. It has long been known for its advanced machine-building technologies, which are used in almost all large Belarusian enterprises, be it an automobile or tractor factory, as well as in many Russian factories, such as KAMAZ and Atommash. By the way, shortly after the opening of the representative office, a delegation from the automobile giant Kama visited the FTI in order to jointly ensure the independence of the import of the automobile industry vis to Western technologies.
Since Soviet times, the developments of scientific research institutes have also been widely used in the aviation industry and astronautics.
Together with the guests, the correspondent of “SOYUZ” got acquainted with the laboratories and the pilot production of the FTI. So, we were shown in action a magnetic abrasive polishing unit – this unique technology today is in demand both in Belarus and in Russia.
It is assumed that in the near future the Russian side will provide funds to equip the SIC representative office with modern research equipment. “Everything will be done well and quickly,” assured Mikhail Kovalchuk. Funding may be provided through scientific and technical programs under the aegis of the Standing Committee of the State of the Union.
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