German-Russian Science Year: Two Countries with Exceptional Cooperation Potential

Dr. Jörn Achterberg

Dr. Jörn Achterberg

© DFG

(03.06.20) Germany and Russia have a long history of cooperating in higher education and science, which have shaped bilateral relations. The German-Russian Year of University Cooperation and Research 2018–2020, taking place under the auspices of the two foreign ministers, is designed to raise awareness of scientific cooperation between the two countries.

In this context, German scientific and research institutions are currently reporting on their diverse forms of cooperation with Russian partner institutions. Thanks to its almost 100-year history of cooperating with Russian and Soviet researchers, the DFG can also look back on a solid partnership:

The DFG celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2020. Since the 1920s, shortly after the founding of its predecessor organisation, the DFG has maintained close relations with countries in the former Soviet Union and initiated the famous Pamir expedition and German-Russian Weeks of Science.

In recent decades, the DFG has systematically deepened its institutional relations with Russian partners, which now include Russian agencies RFBR (Russian Foundation for Basic Research) and RSF (Russian Science Foundation) and the two leading universities MSU (Moscow State University) and SPBU (Saint Petersburg University), in addition to the Academy of Sciences. The German-Russian Road Map initiated at government level also provides a solid framework for good bilateral cooperation.

Interview with the DFG Office Russia: