CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, has decided to end its collaboration with Russia and Belarus. This move affects around 500 researchers associated with Russian institutes.
The current agreement with Russia will expire on November 30, 2024, requiring these scientists to halt their cooperation. This decision follows a similar termination in June 2024 concerning Belarus, impacting 15 Belarusian researchers.
The cessation of collaboration comes in response to Russia's military actions in Ukraine. Despite the loss of Moscow's contribution, which constituted 4.5% of CERN's budget, other member states are expected to fill this financial gap.
CERN, home to the world's largest particle accelerator near Geneva, typically renews its cooperation agreements with other countries every five years. However, Russian researchers at non-Russian institutes are not affected by this halt.
Notably, 90 Russian scientists have relocated to continue their work with CERN. The Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna, Russia, remains an exception to this stoppage.
This decision underscores CERN's commitment to international cooperation and scientific advancement. The organization's aim is to foster peaceful collaboration and continue its groundbreaking research, such as the discovery of the Higgs boson and the development of the World Wide Web.
As CERN marks its 70th anniversary, it looks forward to future projects like the proposed Future Circular Collider, which promises to push the boundaries of particle physics even further.
