On 13 June, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin held a meeting of the Council for Science and Education at the JINR International Conference Centre. The main issue on the agenda was the formation and implementation of national projects supporting technological sovereignty. Following the meeting of the Council, a decree approving the priority directions for the scientific development of Russia will be signed.

Welcoming the participants of the meeting, Vladimir Putin noted the symbolism of the fact that the meeting of the Council discussing Russia’s scientific and technological priorities is taking place in Dubna. The entire history of Dubna as a science city is a good, vivid example of the concerted efforts of the state, scientists, engineering and educational institutions, economic sectors, and, without exaggeration, the entire society in areas crucial for the country’s security and sovereignty,” the President of the Russian Federation stressed. He congratulated the members of the Council, the Russian and international scientific community, and all employees of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research on the landmark event, the initiation of the technological launch of the NICA project.

The President of Russia gave the floor to JINR Director, RAS Academician Grigory Trubnikov to discuss the tools required to ensure Russia’s national technological leadership. “Both the presidential programme of the Russian Science Foundation and mega-grant and youth laboratories, REC and WCRC, should focus on the priorities and technologies discussed today, and should be included in the new set of federal science and technology projects,” Grigory Trubnikov noted.

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The JINR Director expressed support for the list of top high-tech innovations. He noted the increasing interest in science and higher education among young people in Russia. This is primarily due to the Science and Universities national project, which has been operating for several years and will conclude in 2024. In addition, at the request of the Chairman of the Council, he drew the Council’s attention to an ambitious project, the initiative of JINR and the city-forming enterprises of Dubna, supported by the Governor of the Moscow Region, to establish an International Science and Technology Park in Dubna. The project also envisions the construction of a new, modern university campus in the area. The initiative is also supported by several major partner holdings of JINR and Dubna SEZ.

Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Dmitry Chernyshenko, noted that the third round of project selection by the Ministry of Education and Science in Russia will commence in the third quarter of this year. The Dubna Science and Technology Park is seen as a serious contender among other applicants. By the year 2036, a total of 40 modern university campuses are expected to be constructed in the country.

At the request of the President of the Russian Federation, the Government and the Russian Academy of Sciences compiled a list of the most significant high-tech solutions required for the country’s development. “In fact, these are specific, direct tasks for the Russian scientific community, the education system, and the technology business. Everything depends on how successfully these tasks will be solved: the implementation of our current plans, goals, ambitions, and, of course, the historic prospects of Russia,” Vladimir Putin emphasised. ”In the context of the current sanctions and increasing technological competition, every scientific institution, research team, academician, professor, researcher, and graduate student plays a vital role in contributing to the common cause. It is important for us to consider not only what we want or what is profitable and prestigious, but also what is essential for the well-being of our country,” said the president. According to Vladimir Putin, international scientific cooperation in Russia will continue. However, given the current restrictions, it is essential to focus on developing our own scientific capabilities.

Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko spoke about the priorities of the scientific and technological development of the Russian Federation. He discussed the upcoming project to support national technological sovereignty, which will include federal projects related to science and technology. The Russian Academy of Sciences will play an important role in the national projects of technological sovereignty of the Russian Federation. These initiatives will involve a detailed examination of all relevant projects.

Dmitry Chernyshenko highlighted the need for activities related to staffing scientific support for national projects to be systematically and coherently organized and linked to corresponding indicators. “In order to ensure a systematic approach to this matter, I would like to propose the establishment of a separate or two independent federal projects in the structure of the national technological leadership initiatives. These projects would include both the training of specialists and the scientific components,” Dmitry Chernyshenko put forward a proposal.

President of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) Gennady Krasnikov presented to the Council members the priorities of scientific and technological development for the Russian Federation, which were formulated by the RAS in collaboration with number of scientists and experts.

The President of the Russian Federation concluded that financial planning for budget expenditure on science must be carried out for a minimum of six years, or for a longer period if necessary. He recalled that by 2030, it is planned to increase domestic investment in research and development to at least 2% of gross domestic product (GDP), including through a doubling of investments in science and technology by private businesses.

Vladimir Putin concluded the event by announcing that a decree will be signed in the near future to approve priority areas for scientific development in Russia.

The meeting was attended by the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Medvedev, the First Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, Denis Manturov, the Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation, Andrey Fursenko, the Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Science, Education, and Culture, Lilia Gumerova, the Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, Valery Falkov, the Rector of Moscow State University, Viktor Sadovnichy, the Director General of Rosatom State Corporation, Alexey Likhachev, the Director General of the Russian Science Foundation, Vladimir Bespalov, and other members of the council.