1/ At least 2,500 scientists are reported to have left Russia since the start of the war in Ukraine in February 2022 and the number of published scientific papers has collapsed. This comes as the result of isolation due to sanctions, visa restrictions and state paranoia. ⬇️
2/ Novaya Gazeta Europe (NGE) reports on the outcome of a survey of the international ORCID database, which lists more than 20 million scientists globally. Registration in ORCID is mandatory for publishing employees of large Russian universities.
3/ The data indicates more than 130,000 scientists resident in Russia in October 2023. The share of these changing their residence from Russia to a foreign country was practically unchanged from 2012 to 2021, but jumped to 30% in 2022.
4/ NGE estimates that, based on the trendlines, around 2,500 scientists have emigrated since 2022. The number of foreign scientists choosing to come to Russia has also dropped by over two-thirds.
5/ Many of the emigrants are likely to be younger people, as older, more established scientists face more professional and personal difficulties from emigration. Younger men are also more likely to be subjected to mobilisation and have a bigger incentive to leave Russia.
6/ According to one university professional interviewed by NGE, "the best are trying to leave immediately after completing their bachelor’s, master’s and postgraduate studies." Unlike IT workers, scientists are not exempted from being mobilised to fight in Ukraine.
7/ While most emigrating Russian scientists left for the US, Germany and the UK before the war, since February 2023 other destinations have been prefered, in particular Uzbekistan, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and the UAE with a 300% growth in Russian scientific immigration.
8/ The top three destinations are now Germany, the US and Israel – which has had a 175% increase. However, Russian scientific immigration to the UK, France and the US has fallen by more than 20%.
9/ The impact on Russian science is already visible, with a sharp fall in the number and quality of published papers. The share of global science attributed to Russia has fallen from 2-3% to only 1-2%. Russian participation in international scientific conferences has shrunk.
10/ The collapse has been particularly noticeable in the proportion of academic conference papers with a Russia-affiliated author. Around 35,000 had at least one Russia-based author in 2021 but this dropped to about 20,000 in 2022 and only about 11,000 in 2023.
11/ One publication, the UK-based Journal of Physics: Conference Series, illustrates this trend starkly: papers by Russian authors presented in the series fell from nearly 6,000 in 2021 to only 106 by November 2023, despite Russia traditionally being a leader in physics research.
12/ The reasons for this are not hard to find. Scientists are often physically unable to attend conferences due to visa restrictions and bans on direct flights between Russia and the West. Russian scientists were also removed from international collaborative programmes.
13/ Russian scientists report an growing atmosphere of fear and paranoia at home, as well as a shortage of equipment and scientific supplies due to sanctions. Contact and collaboration with foreigners is regarded with increasing suspicion by the authorities.
14/ In some instances, distinguished scientists working on hypersonics and quantum technology have been charged with treason and illegally sharing information in a number of high-profile cases, even though they are said to have had official permission to collaborate.
15/ The impact on Russian science is likely to last for decades. The losses are not all one way, however, as Russia's withdrawal from the global scientific community is likely to hinder collective efforts on issues such as climate change. /end
1/ Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska has proposed that Russia should shift to a 12 hour working day and 6 day working week to halt the country's deepening economic crisis. This has not gone down well with Russian commentators, who compare it to slavery and feudalism. ⬇️
2/ Writing on his personal Telegram channel, Deripaska argues that "in difficult times, we know how to pull ourselves together and work more. And the sooner we switch to this new schedule—from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., including Saturdays—the faster we will undergo this transformation."
3/ Gennady Onishchenko, the former head of Rospotrebnadzor (Russia's national consumer rights agency) and academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, has gone further: he says that Deripaska's proposal must become mandatory and enshrined in law.
1/ The City of London bank Peel Hunt has warned investors that Donald Trump "may have lost control" of the Iran war, raising the "real risk of an inflationary recession" globally. Prolonged higher interest rates are forecast to be a significant possibility. ⬇️
2/ The bank has issued a briefing note to investors drafted by its chief economist, @KallumPickering. He writes:
3/ "Donald Trump may have lost control of the situation, which makes a quick (unilateral) resolution harder and increases the risk that the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked even once fighting ends."
1/ The US attempted to send several Iran-bound bombers to an Italian air base without prior authorisation and was refused permission by the Italian government while the aircraft were in flight. The news comes a day after Spain disclosed it was refusing US military overflights. ⬇️
2/ Corriere della Sella and La Republicca report that on Fridary 27 March, the Italian Chief of the Defence Staff, General Luciano Portolano, was informed that several US bombers were inbound to the Naval Air Station Sigonella in Sicily, controlled by the Italian Air Force.
3/ However, nobody on the US side had requested authorisation or consulted the Italian military leadership. The plan was only communicated to the Italians while the planes were already in flight.
1/ Russians are facing an 'internet tax', reportedly imposed by a secret decree from Vladimir Putin, of 150 rubles ($1.84) for each gigabyte of VPN traffic they use. This is being seen by commentators as a new way of suppressing Telegram's 100 million users in Russia. ⬇️
2/ The BBC Russian Service reports that the FSB has told the Ministry of Digital Development to impose a tax on every gigabyte of VPN traffic after an initial 15 Gb. The FSB wants to discourage Russians from connecting to foreign VPN servers to access resources blocked in Russia.
3/ The tax is due to be put into force by 1 May 2026, despite the opposition of the Ministry of Digital Development and public criticism. It's a stark indication of how the security establishment (the 'siloviki') has become the dominant player in the Russian government.
1/ Recruitment for Russia's drone forces has slumped, despite an intensive recruitment campaign, because potential volunteers fear being forced to become stormtroopers. The situation is so severe that a Russian general has suggested moving drone forces out of the Russian army. ⬇️
2/ Alexey Chadayev, the head of the Ushkuynik Research and Production Centre – a leading Russian drone development organisation – recounts a conversation that he had recently with a Russian lieutenant general about the army's failing UAV pilot recruitment programme:
3/ "Today I had a conversation with a lieutenant general, a longtime acquaintance of mine and, without exaggeration, a senior comrade and mentor. He gave me an idea I'd like to share with the channel.