Invasion of Ukraine begins cascade of decoupling from Russian science
International science projects, scientific publishing and federations have all begun suspending cooperation with Russian scientists in unprecedented reaction
The scientific community is grappling with the challenges of decoupling from Russia. Many research organisations in Europe have cut ties including Germany, France, Denmark and the Netherlands. But in the UK, the picture is less clear with universities being told to make their own choices. Meanwhile, the publishing world is facing its own dilemma about whether to refuse papers from Russia.
European institutions have acted, too. The European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities has suspended the membership of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, concluding that the ability of these academies ‘to act autonomously and independently’ from their governments warrants its decision. Cern will suspend Russia’s observer status and will not engage in new collaborations with it. But Cern chose not to expel its Russian users, who number around 1000.