Ministry recommends coordinating foreign trips for scientists
The Ministry of Science and Higher Education has sent recommendations to universities and scientific institutes on the need to coordinate official trips of employees to unfriendly states. The initiative followed the arrest of a Russian archaeologist in Poland.
Apr 18, 2026 0
The arrest of a Russian archaeologist in Poland has prompted new guidelines for scientific travel to unfriendly states.
Source:
The relevant letters have been sent to educational and scientific organizations, the newspaper Vedomosti reported on February 2, citing informed sources.
The directive emerged against the backdrop of the detention in Poland of St. Petersburg archaeologist Alexander Buryagin. According to one of the publication«s interlocutors, this case further complicates the already difficult scientific exchange with foreign countries.
Another source said that as early as 2024–2025, at Moscow State University (MSU) and the Higher School of Economics (HSE), scientists and employees began to be redirected on business trips to Turkey and Saudi Arabia. Moreover, last year the number of trips to Iran increased sharply, although for many specialists this direction is not their field.
The press service of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI, in response to Vedomosti«s inquiry, noted that the reduction in international contacts in the scientific community began much earlier due to anti-Russian sanctions and Russia»s exclusion from a number of international research collaborations.
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