On 11 July, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Israel to the Russian Federation Simona Halperin visited the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research. During the meeting with the JINR Directorate, the parties discussed prospects for strengthening cooperation between the Institute and Israel.

The programme of the visit began with an excursion to the objects of JINR’s large research infrastructure. At the Laboratory of High Energy Physics, the guests toured the NICA Accelerator Complex, including the experimental pavilion of the MPD Detector, the Synchrophasotron Hall, and the superconducting magnet factory. At the Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, the delegation got acquainted with the Superheavy Element Factory based on the DC-280 Cyclotron and visited the FLNR Applied Physics Centre.

Director of the Joint Institute Grigory Trubnikov opened the meeting with Ambassador Simona Halperin. He stressed the importance of working together to contribute to the unifying mission of science. “In today’s context, strengthening and securing international scientific cooperation is a top priority and a most important mission for such global intergovernmental scientific organizations as the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research. JINR has almost 70 years of experience in facilitating successful scientific partnership across countries. I am sure that JINR’s work at a high diplomatic level, like today’s, allows us to fulfil this mission in the most effective way,” Grigory Trubnikov said.

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Israel to Russia Simona Halperin noted that she was glad to have the opportunity to get acquainted with the activities of one of the leading international scientific organizations. “Visiting JINR’s laboratories and meeting its scientists was unforgettable. It showed me that science and scientific collaboration truly do play a key role in bringing the professional scientific community together. That is why building bonds and bridges in various fields, including economics and science, is a very significant part of my work,” Simona Halperin stressed.

At the meeting, the parties discussed the achievements and prospects for the development of cooperation between JINR and scientific organizations of Israel. The fruitful collaborative work in relativistic heavy ion physics within the NICA Megascience Project and the creation of international collaborations of the MPD and BM@N Experiments at JINR were emphasised. In addition, the results of joint activity in theoretical physics and as part of other international scientific collaborations, especially CERN, were noted. Following the discussions, a wide range of topics for expanding scientific partnership was identified. In particular, the parties expressed interest in considering options for cooperation development as part of the NICA Project and in applied scientific research.

Deputy Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Israel to Russia Yulia Rachinsky-Spivakov and First Secretary of the Embassy Dana Raz attended the meeting at the JINR Directorate as well, representing the Israeli Embassy. JINR was represented by Vice-Director Latchesar Kostov, JINR Chief Scientific Secretary Sergey Nedelko, Head of the International Cooperation Department Otilia-Ana Culicov, and Deputy Director for Scientific Work at the Laboratory of High Energy Physics at JINR Alexander Sorin.