Russian President Vladimir Putin met on Nov. 11 with Gennady Krasnikov, the newly elected President of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) – for many decades one of the most respected, if underfunded, institutional repositories of scientific excellence in the country. In his discussion with Krasnikov, Putin emphasized the importance of basic science, and its prompt application to the economy and military spheres, given the current crisis. Putin began: “First of all, I would like to congratulate you on your election as President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, a highly important and the oldest association of our country’s leading institutes and scientists… You are a leading specialist in the field of microelectronics, a priority area for Russia.”
Putin then stated: “I would very much like the Academy to play a more important role in economic development, in improving the system of the state’s defense capabilities in the current conditions under your guidance. This concerns all aspects, including humanities and, of course, natural sciences.”
Krasnikov responded with a plan for involving “the Russian Academy of Sciences in the state decision-making system,” to provide “unbiased and objective expert examinations” in all fields. He added that in his five-year term he would like to “induce large-scale projects. In the past, our country carried out very important atomic and space projects, which were driving the economy and encouraging the development of numerous related industries. We believe that the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences can initiate large-scale pro-active projects of this kind in specific areas of science. We would be ready to choose, together with the Government, such vitally important areas, and would both submit projects and ensure their further scientific and methodological guidance.”
