MOSCOW, February 21. /TASS/. Russia is open to resumption of cooperation with the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) if such an offer is extended, though Russia has "a lot of work on its own" in developing domestic science, Mikhail Kovalchuk, President of the National Research Center Kurchatov Institute, told TASS.
"We are always ready, but the thing is that we have a lot of work of our own. <…> However, we welcome [international scientific] cooperation and we will try to maintain and support it," he said when asked whether the Russian side is ready to resume cooperation with CERN if the organization makes such an offer.
The agreement between Russia and the European Organization for Nuclear Research on scientific-technical cooperation in the area of high-energy physics was terminated on December 1, 2024. The document outlined the expansion of Moscow’s participation in CERN’s activities and the organization’s participation in projects on Russian territory. That said, CERN announced earlier the termination of cooperation with about 500 researchers linked to Russia. Commenting on CERN's decision, Kovalchuk noted that 80% of the Russian scientists affected were employees of the institute, adding that 25-30 Russian scientists worked at CERN on a permanent basis, while others served as consultants.