On 22 March, Vice-Minister of Science and Higher Education of Kazakhstan Darkhan Ahmed-Zaki visited JINR. As part of the visit, he met with JINR Directorate to discuss new joint projects, including the development of advanced scientific infrastructure in Kazakhstan. Darkhan Ahmed-Zaki participated in the session of the JINR Committee of Plenipotentiaries and got acquainted with the scientific infrastructure of the Institute’s laboratories.

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JINR Director Grigory Trubnikov thanked the Minister for supporting the interests of the Institute in nuclear physics and experimental research.

“The Institute greatly appreciates the support it receives from the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the President of the country. Some of the highest numbers of dissertations defended at the Institute come from Kazakhstan representatives. We try our best to promote the diversified development of young specialists so that they can gain scientific, administrative and organizational experience useful for implementing large projects in Kazakhstan,” Grigory Trubnikov noted.

“Teamwork, the joint effort many specialists, is the heart of nuclear physics. Over the past decades, with a notable increase in the involvement of Kazakhstani scientists in JINR projects, more than 150 young specialists have received training. Many of them now fruitfully work in all the laboratories of the Institute. We are very pleased that the work of our researchers makes a significant contribution to the greater world science. The fact that Kazakhstani specialists participated in collaborations on the NICA Project is a great success for all of us,” Darkhan Ahmed-Zaki said.

The parties discussed the implementation of several scheduled joint projects in the areas of nuclear medicine and the development of a large facility with an ultracold neutron channel. An advanced research project with ultracold neutrons has already succeeded to attract the attention of not only Dubna and Kazakhstan scientists, but also specialists from many other countries. JINR plans to take an active part in the design and development of a number of research facilities in Kazakhstan.

As an example of successful cooperation experience, the parties noted the creation of the DC-60 Accelerator Complex in Kazakhstan with the Institute’s help. For many years, JINR has continued to supervise the project, helping Kazakhstani specialists upkeep its status as one of the best accelerators in Europe. Another example of effective cooperation was the launch of a cloud computing cluster at the Institute of Nuclear Physics in Almaty in 2023. Thanks to it, the republic’s scientists have access to the powerful resources of the JINR computing infrastructure.

As Darkhan Ahmed-Zaki emphasised, the areas of scientific research that Kazakhstan prioritises today are nuclear physics, information technologies, and nuclear medicine. He noted that the government of the Republic of Kazakhstan is providing significant support to science, with a special focus on engaging youth in it. In this regard, the creation of joint programmes for the training of highly qualified scientific personnel at JINR is of particular interest.

On the same day, Darkhan Ahmed-Zaki participated in the session of the JINR Committee of Plenipotentiaries currently taking place. In his speech, the Vice-Minister of Science and Higher Education of Kazakhstan pointed out the importance of international cooperation both for Kazakhstan and for all Member Countries. He spoke about joint projects implemented together with JINR scientists in the republic and confirmed his intentions to continue cooperation in new technologies, innovations, and scientific discoveries.

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In addition, Darkhan Ahmed-Zaki got acquainted with the flagship projects of the JINR scientific infrastructure, including the NICA Megaproject in the Laboratory of High Energy Physics, the IBR-2 Pulsed Reactor in the Laboratory of Neutron Physics, the Superheavy Elements Factory in the Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, and the Govorun Supercomputer in the Laboratory of Information Technologies.

At the end of the visit programme, Vice-Minister held a meeting with the national group of the Republic of Kazakhstan at JINR, where Head of the group Yerzhan Mukhamedzhanov made a report on scientists’ the activities.

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