All news

Putin to visit NRC Kurchatov Institute and meet regional governors

According to Peskov, the president will meet with the Centre’s Director Mikhail Kovalchuk

MOSCOW, December 7 /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit the National Research Centre "Kurchatov Institute" (NRC KI), which deals with atomic energy research, on Monday, presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said.

According to Peskov, the president will meet with the Centre’s Director Mikhail Kovalchuk.

Kurchatov Institute was founded in Moscow in 1943 under a name of Laboratory No.2 for development of nuclear weapons. In 1960, it was named Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy after its founder Igor Kurchatov. The Institute got the status of the Russian Research Centre in 1991 and became the National Research Centre (NRC "Kurchatov Institute") in 2010.

The Kurchatov Institute created the first domestic nuclear bomb (1949) and the world’s first thermonuclear bomb in 1953. Later, the institute also carried out research on peaceful use of atomic energy.

"Monday is a day of working meetings for the president who is going to visit the ‘Kurchatov Institute’," Peskov said, adding that National Research Centre "Kurchatov Institute" was marking its 5th anniversary these days.

Apart from the visit to NRC "Kurchatov Institute," according to the Kremlin spokesman, Putin will also meet several regional heads, including Governor of the Perm region Viktor Basargin.

The Kremlin spokesman warned journalists that Monday would be the last day of accreditation for Putin’s annual news conference for Russian and foreign journalists scheduled for December 17. "It is going to be your last opportunity. After that the system will stop accepting your applications," Peskov said.