MINSK, 1 July (BelTA) – The National Academy of Sciences of Belarus (NASB) and the Russian national research center Kurchatov Institute intend to step up cooperation in key areas of science, representatives of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus told BelTA.
For the sake of more effective interaction and for the sake of getting Belarusian research organizations involved in research the Kurchatov Institute has opened a representative office at premises of the Physical-Technical Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus in Minsk. Several labs are located there. The materials science lab will work directly with the Physical-Technical Institute. “What we do is similar. We are interested in various materials. Apart from that, the Physical-Technical Institute is interested in the modernization of particle accelerators of the Kurchatov Institute,” Director of the Physical-Technical Institute Vitaly Zalessky said.
Genetic research is one of the avenues of cooperation between the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus and the Kurchatov Institute. “We are preparing a joint project concerning microbiome of plants, animals, and soil. Belarusian microbiologists and geneticists will participate in it. The project's implementation is supposed to begin next year. It is designed to run for three years. It will be fundamental research,” said Director of the Institute of Genetics and Cytology of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus Ruslan Sheiko.
Last year the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus and the Kurchatov Institute signed a roadmap designed to guide cooperation in the period till 2030. The roadmap provides for joint and equal participation in the creation and use of a megascience class scientific research structure. The roadmap lists over 40 events and projects, including in nuclear energy, nuclear medicine, and development of unmanned aerial vehicles.
The Russian national research center Kurchatov Institute is one of the world's top scientific research institutions. In the 20th century it was instrumental to national security and the development of strategic areas, including the development and creation of nuclear weapons, nuclear-driven underwater and surface fleets, nuclear energy industry. At present the Kurchatov Institute boasts a unique research infrastructure. It carries out research and development in a broad range of areas of modern science and technology, including power engineering, convergent NBICS technologies, particle physics, high-tech healthcare, and information technologies.