The President runs the election of candidates. Elections in the Russian Academy of Sciences: the main protégé Kovalchukov lost, but did the Kovalchuks still win? So don't give it to anyone

Academician Vladislav Panchenko is considered one of the favorites in the upcoming presidential elections of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Preparatory process for the election of a new president Russian Academy Sciences (RAS) has reached the finish line. Recall that the election of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences should be held on September 25 at the General Meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The new RAS president is to be officially announced on September 27th. This is the second attempt by academicians to elect a president. The first, in March 2017, was actually thwarted as a result of a "special operation" carried out by government officials: all three candidates for the highest academic post withdrew their candidacies.

The political and state leadership of the country decided not to let the September elections take their course. From the government, preparations for the elections were supervised by Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Arkady Dvorkovich.

For the past six months, the academy has been in a unique situation. It was headed by Academician Valery Kozlov, Acting President of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences prepared a new regulation on presidential elections. By July 25, the RAS had formed a list of candidates for the presidency, and it was sent to the government for approval - this is the new procedure established after the disruption of the elections in March.

Initially, this list included seven candidates for academicians: Evgeny Kablov - General Director of the All-Russian Institute of Aviation Materials; Gennady Krasnikov - General Director of JSC Research Institute of Molecular Electronics, Chairman of the Board of Directors of PJSC Mikron; Robert Nigmatulin - Scientific Director of the Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. P.P. Shirshov;

Vladislav Panchenko - Scientific Director of the Institute for Problems of Laser and Information Technologies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Chairman of the Board Russian fund fundamental research (RFBR); Alexander Sergeev - Director of the Institute of Applied Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Alexey Khokhlov - Vice-Rector of Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov, Head of the Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Polymers, Institute of Organoelement Compounds, Russian Academy of Sciences; Valery Chereshnev - Director of the Institute of Immunology and Physiology of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Basically, all of them were put forward by the branches of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Only two - Aleksey Khokhlov and Robert Nigmatulin - are self-nominated: they had to collect 50 signatures of their academic colleagues. With which they easily coped, collecting even more.

On August 31, the government of the Russian Federation, having considered the candidates submitted by the Russian Academy of Sciences, corrected the list. Two candidates are missing from the list approved by the government: Aleksey Khokhlov and Valery Chereshnev. Thus, the General Meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences on September 25 will elect the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences from five candidates. In the event of a successful completion of the elections, the candidacy of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences will be finally approved by President Vladimir Putin. By the way, he may not agree with the choice of academicians. And then he himself will appoint the president of the Russian Academy of Sciences - any of the academicians of his choice. Thus, the state actually ceased to consider the Academy of Sciences, at least relatively separate from it, the state, as a force. An academician, especially the president of the Russian Academy of Sciences, is now an ordinary civil servant.

Be that as it may, according to NG's information from sources in the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences, "a fundamental instruction was given from above to hold elections."

For now, the following can be noted. The “screened out” academician Alexei Khokhlov is the son of one of the best, as many believe, rectors of Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov for the entire Soviet history, Rema Khokhlova, was considered in academic circles as one of the desired candidates for the post of President of the Russian Academy of Sciences. He is well aware of the structure of European science (Honorary Professor at the University of Ulm, Germany). Khokhlov heads the Science Council under the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation. In one of his interviews after his approval as a candidate for the post of President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, he stated: “Given my life experience I would be more wary of the concept of democracy in science.” Most likely, the “jealousy” of the current rector of Moscow State University, Academician Viktor Sadovnichy, affected the government filter in his screening. According to another version, this candidate did not suit the corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, director of the National Research Center "Kurchatov Institute" Mikhail Kovalchuk. The latter in behind-the-scenes conversations is called one of the initiators of the reform of the Russian Academy of Sciences, which began four years ago.

As for academician Valery Chereshnev, he himself, it seems, had no illusions about his candidacy. It said here that he had worked in the State Duma for 10 years. Apparently, the government simply did not want to "wash out" the votes in the elections and removed the "weak figure" from the board. It is all the more perplexing that Academician Robert Nigmatulin is left on the list. He is 77 years old, and according to the current regulation on elections, there is an age limit of 75 years. Everyone expected that it was he who would be cut off the list. But, as one of the academicians joked in an interview with NG, "the government simply cut off the last two candidates on the list."

Several independent sources told Nezavisimaya Gazeta that Academician Vladislav Panchenko is the government's favorite in the forthcoming presidential elections. According to our information, in some branches of the Russian Academy of Sciences they are trying to convince them to vote for the "authority's candidate." However, this will be difficult to do.

An NG source, on condition of anonymity, said that Panchenko has many complaints about the work of the RFBR, which he heads: “The work of the fund is not transparent. In addition, Panchenko has a heavy moral trail: after all, it was he who, in March of this year, actually became the initiator of the disruption of the presidential elections in the Russian Academy of Sciences. He has already withdrawn his candidacy and is running again. It's ugly." It should also be noted that Academician Panchenko turns 70 on September 15. Taking into account the government's policy of rejuvenating top management cadres, this can also play its role.

However, the option of an unexpected personnel decision is not ruled out. An NG source in the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences said that after the government decision to unhook the two academicians, the figure of academician Gennady Krasnikov could shoot. "For him - a powerful military-industrial lobby in the academy," said the interlocutor of "NG". - He is a member of the Military-Industrial Commission, headed by Vladimir Putin. Krasnikov leads the interdepartmental Council of Chief Designers for the electronic component base of the Russian Federation. With the government's declared course towards the digital economy, all this can play for him. In addition, he is only 59 years old. Again, that's a plus for him."

The election of the new President of the Russian Academy of Sciences took place on September 26. Of the one and a half thousand academicians who participated in the voting, Alexander Sergeev scored 681 votes, and Vladislav Panchenko, who was called the favorite of the race, - total 204, this is the last result. But since an absolute majority of at least 799 votes was required to win, a second round of voting was required. Reached the final along with the physicist acting scientific director of the Institute of Oceanology. Shirshova Robert Nigmatulin. As a result, Sergeev was in the lead by a significant margin of 633 votes, he was supported by over a thousand academicians.

Probably, the support of colleagues, the academician who dropped out of the race, played a big role in Sergeyev's breakthrough. Alexey Khokhlov and former president RAS Vladimir Fortov.

"When choosing a president, we must pay attention Special attention to the fact that this should be a prominent scientist who enjoys our respect and will enjoy the respect of the authorities ", - Vladimir Fortov said at the general meeting on September 25, speaking in support of Alexander Sergeyev.

Alexei Khokhlov, in turn, called on his supporters to "join forces" in the campaign for the election of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences and support the physicist.

Before the reform of the Russian Academy of Sciences, academicians did just that - they chose the most worthy candidate and voted for him.

"In Soviet times, there were several candidates at first, and then one of the strongest candidates was chosen. It was not like some Ivan Ivan Ivanovich was lowered from above. They chose among scientists people whom everyone knows well, who spoke with their program", - Member of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences Valery Chereshnev, who declined to comment on the election results today.

Most likely, the president will not oppose the choice of academicians, I'm sure Director of the Center for Political Studies Financial University Pavel Salin. Alexander Sergeev, in his opinion, played the role of a "good cop" in this election campaign due to the fact that the alleged winner Vladislav Panchenko collected all the "anti-rating" for himself. Meanwhile, both of them represent the Kovalchuk clan.

“I think that the Kovalchuks won anyway. They simply took into account the risks that had accumulated. Initially, Panchenko was considered the main candidate. But he has accumulated a significant anti-rating in the academic environment for all this time, because he was closely associated with the Kovalchuks. As I understand it, they decided to nominate a reserve candidate who would insure him and be more compromise. status quo advocate. If you look at his connections, then he is connected with the Kovalchuks through Fursenko, and, it seems, also has access to Mr. Kiriyenko. The maneuver was successful, Sergeyev was elected, but I think that the expectations of the academic community, which are based, among other things, on his election speech, will run counter to the policy that Sergeyev will pursue. Because the informal mandate with which he came is different from the campaign promises he made"- said Pavel Salin.

Therefore, the authorities have no formal reasons to cancel the election results: they passed without scandals, and the academicians "bought" the trick.

"It was important for the authorities that the academic community itself elect its future president. The authorities even prepared for the fact that none of the candidates would be elected, but would be appointed interim executor. Most likely, Sergeyev would have become it, as a compromise candidate. But everything went smoothly, without scandals, albeit not in one, but in two rounds, but I see no other options for approving Sergeyev, who is positioned as the choice of the academic community. The favorites were the candidates who were supported by the Kovalchuk group, because the sphere of education and science in the informal distribution of groups of influence, informally - the Kremlin towers, is the sphere of influence of the Kovalchuks, "- says the expert .

A candidate who is not affiliated with them in one way or another had no chance, the political scientist believes. “Given that the issue of state funding [of science] will be dealt with much more strictly, and funding will come only in exchange for absolute loyalty, then Sergeyev, no matter how much he wants, will have a limited room for maneuver. A classic election combination was played , and the academic community bought into this combination"- added the expert.

The election of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences was a sham, I'm sure ex-deputy chairman of the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation Yuri Boldyrev.

"These were not elections, but profanation. Elections in a situation where extremely respected people could be taken - Chereshnev and Khokhlov - and simply weeded out without any explanation - this is not formally an abuse of the powers of the Government. But given what these two are known for respected scientists, this was a clear abuse official position on the part of those who weeded out Khokhlov and Chereshnev without any explanation, "- Yuri Boldyrev told the correspondent.

Recall that initially seven candidates were nominated for the post of President of the Academy, but the Government from the race of Director of the Yekaterinburg Institute of Immunology and Physiology, member of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences Valery Chereshnev and Vice-Rector of Moscow State University. Lomonosov Alexei Khokhlov, who are opponents of the reform of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

And yet, economist Yuri Boldyrev considers the outcome of the elections at the Academy a worthy example of opposition to imposed rules.

"To the credit of the Academy of Sciences, despite the most severe pressure, the protege of the Kovalchuks and directly Putin [Panchenko] were not allowed in. The academic community demonstrated, from my point of view, a high degree of elementary self-respect. It seems to me that this is an example worthy of all Russian citizens to follow. everyone is crushed, but some break down, while others demonstrate themselves as real scientists and citizens. Yes, everything is not over yet. Are there forces and opportunities for demonstrative arbitrariness in this government, in the president, including the ability to take and not approve Sergeyev, also without explaining how the Government "What happened to Chereshnev and Khokhlov? Yes, formally there is such a possibility. But there is only one answer - in any case, from my point of view, waiting for this government to come to their senses is pointless and useless", - says the expert.

Alexander Sergeev plans to elect a new presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences (it is known that among the candidates proposed by the president will be the "screened out" Alexei Khokhlov), and also - change the legal status of the Academy.

"Also among the most important priority steps is the formulation of the academy's proposals for correcting 253-FZ, adopted in 2013, in terms of changing legal status RAN. available now federal status budget institution simply does not allow the academy to actually fulfill its tasks and creates insurmountable difficulties in interactions with FASO. At a meeting with candidates for the RAS presidency in June, Vladimir Putin allowed for the opportunity to follow this path, and I believe that it would be right for us to use this opportunity. The issue of status is a key one, and almost all the candidates acknowledged this in their speeches."- Alexander Sergeev told RIA Novosti.

What exactly lies behind the desire to change the legal status of the Russian Academy of Sciences remains unclear.

Pavel Salin believes that under this wording new president implements the plan of the Kovalchuks to turn the Academy into player in the market of intellectual services .

“We don’t know what Sergeyev had in mind. But we can assume that these are just the plans that the Kovalchuks have been hatching for a long time,-make sure that the Academy is not positioned as the only executor of state orders, as it was in Soviet times, when the system was tailored to the Academy of Sciences. Then the authorities needed something and the order was formulated by the Russian Academy of Sciences. Now it is proposed to move away from this approach, to make the Academy one of the players in the competitive market of intellectual services. This is the key position that the Kovalchuks have long been promoting in science and education: science and education are a market, a competitive environment, and not something that goes beyond market concepts. I think that just this change in the status of the RAS is aimed at making it a more flexible player in the market of intellectual services. If now the academic community is aimed at the state as the main customer, then Sergeev, within the framework of the Kovalchuk paradigm, will gradually transform the RAS into one of the players in the market of intellectual services. For this, probably, a change in legal status is needed. If this is so, then Sergeyev will succeed", the political scientist suggested.

Scheduled for Monday, promised to be special. Elderly academicians were drawn this morning to the "Golden Brains" from Gagarin Square long before it began.

Many of the academics, especially those who are already aged and not particularly friendly with the Internet, wanted to make sure on the sidelines that the entire pseudo-scientific Runet had been discussing the last two days, in a possible postponement of the presidential election.

After all, not everyone knew that the day before the president of the Russian Academy of Sciences agreed with the idea of ​​postponing the elections, although he had not spoken about this before. At the same time, the word “leaked” was heard more than once in the corridors and in the hall, both in the context of the leak that occurred on Friday and in another context. The importance of the event was also indicated by the composition of distinguished guests - the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Education arrived at the meeting. The hall was full - those who did not get a seat stood in the aisles.

“Sit down, it’s better not to stand,” Dvorkovich addressed the president of the Russian Academy of Sciences, who, having introduced the vice-premier, wished to listen to him standing in the presidium.

In his greeting, Dvorkovich thanked the scientific teams and institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences for the successes achieved. He recalled that Last year Russian science has strengthened its positions, the Strategy of Scientific and Technological Development of Russia has been adopted.

Wishing him success, Dvorkovich ended with a phrase, which was later discussed by many during the break, about excessive bureaucracy modern system management of domestic science. “I will never believe that the Russian Academy of Sciences will not be able to cope with difficulties. Complaints, crying are absolutely inappropriate here, ”Dvorkovich said, which caused a noticeable buzz in the hall.

After the speech of the Minister of Education, Vladimir took the floor and confirmed the conjectures of the audience, saying that "today we have an unusual meeting." Feeling the interest of academicians, he touched upon the issue, which was scheduled for the evening part of the meeting.

He said that the day before he met with other applicants for the post of President of the Russian Academy of Sciences and they decided to withdraw their candidacies.

“A group of our colleagues, academicians, are persistently raising the issue of making adjustments to the charter. It takes time to discuss these procedures - we think half a year should be enough. The term is very short, it will pass very quickly, it is necessary to shift the dates of the elections. I support this proposal because we are holding elections as part of the new academy, and the documents have been developed earlier,” the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences explained.

Fortov expressed concern for the unity of the academy. “When we made a decision in favor of the existing order, we used voting, not consensus,” he hinted at the absence of claims to the charter among all members of the presidium in the recent past. According to him, the decision to recuse himself was first made by two other candidates - and, and then he himself.

“If I do not withdraw my candidacy, then I will remain an uncontested candidate. I don’t want to risk the interests of the academy, I am also withdrawing my candidacy, ”Fortov said what many members of the academy already knew the night before. Liquid applause broke out in the hall. According to Fortov, he spoke with representatives, where he was assured that "it is possible to move our vote by six months and hold elections."

At these words, the order in the hall was broken, the delegates began to come out to the microphone and make fiery speeches.

Academician Zakharov recalled that the powers of the presidium expire on March 28, and suggested extending them for six months.

The Siberian academician was furious that “the man who met us at the hotel told us about what had happened.” He demanded a meeting of scientists with President Putin and made a nod to Mikhail A, who was sitting on the presidium: “Comrade Kotyukov is at least engaged in restructuring, but the presidium has not done anything.”

Academician Dedov delivered a bright speech on the incapacity of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences: “In the system that has developed, we can no longer work with you. The result of the Presidium's work is zero.

We come, listen to reports, disperse, ”he formulated the scheme of work of the presidium, however, familiar to everyone who has been to it at least once.

A stormy reaction was caused by the speech of Academician Zalikhanov, who recalled how, under similar conditions, in 1991, people's deputies of the USSR were convened: “Our scientist-president is rather weak as a man. Toothless wants to pass the academy.”

It was clear to everyone that after the removal of all three candidates, the presidential elections would not take place this week. Discussion of the fate of the elections continued after reports on the work done over the past three years. Not all academicians listened to these reports; by the time the discussion resumed, a well-detectable smell of alcohol penetrated the discussion room - fortunately, there was a buffet in the lobby, where they poured vodka and whiskey.

Pavel Kotlyar/Gazeta.Ru

The rector silently watched what was happening in the hall from the top row of the presidium for several hours.

There were quite a few elderly people in the hall, many of them felt unwell. The Gazeta.Ru correspondent twice had to help the academicians who had fallen on the stairs.

Speaking about the reasons for the pressure on the RAS, Academician Eric Galimov said that the academy's fault is that it is losing the initiative. And he came up with an unexpected proposal. “We resist all the time. We have to work creatively. It must be borne in mind that in 2018 the presidential elections. We need to do something that will become the basis of his platform.

I think that if we create such a document, the attitude towards the academy will change, because behind what happened is the dissatisfaction of the country's leadership with the state of affairs in the academy,” he said.

Academician Kashin's speech was sharp, he called everything that happens at the academy a special operation. “The academy needed mishandled Cossacks, at the right time they act on command, and now two candidates have played their role. By law, the RAS is independent in its actions.”

Academician Mesyats spoke from the rostrum about how this operation was being prepared: “This is a carefully thought-out special operation, I saw how it went on the presidium.

On Friday at 9 am Fortov was taken away by a car, in the afternoon he returned and said what was happening ... "

In his opinion, the reform of the Russian Academy of Sciences that began in 2013 and what is happening now are links in the same chain. “We are not dissidents – why are they doing this to us?” - he said.

As a result of a heated discussion, the general meeting voted to postpone the election of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

It is proposed to hold elections no later than November 20, 2017. In addition, the meeting voted to extend for this term the powers of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Presidium and Vice-Presidents of the Academy of Sciences in their current composition.

Scientists interviewed by Gazeta.Ru regard the current situation as an occasion for new surprises that the Russian Academy of Sciences will have to face in the near future. So, in the midst of the meeting, the Secretary of the Russian Academy of Sciences Mikhail stated "Interfax" that the new presidential elections of the Russian Academy of Sciences can be held according to a new scheme - amendments to the law on science are being prepared that will directly affect this procedure.

According to him, the law can be adopted by the Duma in the spring session, and new elections may be held according to a new scheme: the general meeting will select several candidates for the post of head of the Russian Academy of Sciences and present it to the president of the country, who will select and appoint one of them.

Academician Paltsev, by the way, did not bring this information to the attention of the general meeting.

“Amendments may be made to the charter of the academy during this time, according to which the president of the Russian Academy of Sciences will be elected not by the academy, but by the president himself, then it will lose its independence,” one of the members of the presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences told Gazeta.ru.

Another option is that not only academicians, but also corresponding members will be allowed to be elected to the presidency of the RAS.

This opens up the opportunity to become the president of the academy, for example, to the director, whose influence many associate with the start of the RAS reform in 2013.

“Obviously, under a completely far-fetched pretext, the RAS was simply knocked out of the game for 8-10 months, for the period when decisions will be made on financing fundamental research in the country and these funds will be redistributed,” said Viktor Kalinushkin, head of the RAS trade union.

Who is behind them and what should the scientific community expect from them

The Russian government agreed on candidates for the presidency of the Academy of Sciences. The list includes Vladislav Panchenko, Alexander Sergeev, Gennady Krasnikov, Robert Nigmatulin and Evgeny Kablov. Elections are to be held at the general meeting of the Academy on September 25, and the new president is scheduled to be officially announced on September 27. Information agency "Part-Media" http://riapm.ru/showpage.php?id=181 gives a description of each candidate.

The protracted elections of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences are more and more reminiscent of a clownery turning into a farce. More than 2 thousand members of the Russian Academy of Sciences, who gathered in March of this year from all over our vast Motherland to elect the leadership of the Russian Academy of Sciences, learned from the very first minutes that they were going in vain and there would be no elections, since all three candidates, including President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vladimir Fortov , withdrew their nominations. The blame for this curious event lies entirely with Fortov, whose maniacal desire to remain in power for another term led to the adoption of election documents with clear preferences for the incumbent President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, which, of course, did not please his competitors: Vladislav Panchenko and Alexander Makarov.

The belated intervention of the administration of the President of the Russian Federation, which did not want to see Vladimir Fortov as President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, led to the cancellation of the elections, or rather, to their postponement to September of this year and to the appointment of acting. President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vice-President Valery Kozlov. From that moment on, the election of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences has attracted maximum attention, both from power structures and society as a whole. The Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences promptly adopted a reasonable Regulation on the procedure for nominating candidates for the position of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences and holding the elections themselves. According to this Regulation, any academician of the RAS not older than 75 years of age who is nominated by one of the RAS divisions by obtaining a simple majority in the voting of members of the Bureau of the Division, or who has collected 50 signatures of members of the RAS in support of his nomination, can become a candidate, at the same time, each Division can nominate not more than one candidate, and each member of the RAS can give his signatures to one or another candidate more than once.

The State Duma also intervened in this process. She adopted a law on new rules for the election and approval of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The adopted law determines that the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences is elected by the general meeting of members of the Russian Academy of Sciences by a simple majority of votes, that is, more than 50%. The election procedure is as follows: first, candidates for the position of President of the Russian Academy of Sciences are nominated from among academicians, then these candidates are submitted for approval to the Government of the Russian Federation, after that, at the general meeting of the RAS, the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences is elected from the agreed candidates by a simple majority of votes, after which he is approved by the President of the Russian Federation . If the Government of the Russian Federation agreed on less than two candidates, or none of the candidates scored more than 50% of the votes at the general meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences, or all candidates recused themselves, or the President of the Russian Federation did not approve the elected President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, then the elections are considered invalid and repeated ones are scheduled. Before new elections are held, the President of the Russian Federation appoints acting President of the Russian Academy of Sciences at the suggestion of the Government of the Russian Federation from among the academicians. In the event that the current President of the Russian Academy of Sciences resigns his powers ahead of schedule, then the acting President The head of the RAS is also appointed by the President of the Russian Federation.

The nomination of candidates has been completed and agreed upon. Let's briefly present the registered candidates in order of seniority, as is customary in the scientific community, highlighting both the official sides of the biography and little-known facts that have a much greater impact on the real chances of candidates. Those facts that they themselves try not to advertise once again.

1. Nigmatulin Robert Iskandrovich (nominated by 129 members of the Academy), born in 1940, 77 years old, mechanical scientist, scientific director of the Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences since 1991, member of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences, ex-president of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Bashkortostan, deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation third convocation (2000-2003). Represented the State Duma in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. From 1994 to 2005 he was a visiting professor at the Rensselair Polytechnic Institute (Troy, New York, USA). In 1996-1998 - Visiting Professor at the University of Pierre and Marie Curie (Sorbonne, Paris, France), 2000. - Professor of the Isaac Newton Institute (Cambridge, UK).

He is known for the fact that his brother Bulat was the Deputy Minister of Atomic Energy of Russia, and he himself headed the coordinating council of the Ecological Forum movement. This organization proved the usefulness of nuclear energy for the Russian ecology and knocked out budget streams under these big words. Of course, she did not conduct any environmental protection activities. The main problem for his election is his age, which is in conflict with the Charter of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and the lack of support from his own Department of Earth Sciences. His nomination is an attempt to catch up with the departing train

2. Panchenko Vladislav Yakovlevich (nominated by the Bureau of the Departments of Nanotechnology and Information Technology, Historical and Philological Sciences, global problems and international relations and 153 members), born in 1947, 69 years old, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences since 2008, scientist in the field of laser information technologies, scientific instrumentation, nonlinear optics and medical physics, Chairman of the Board of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR), scientific director of the Institute of Laser Problems and Information Technologies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, member of the Presidium of the Troitsk Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, member of the Scientific Council under the Security Council of the Russian Federation, member of the Scientific and Technical Council of the Military Industrial Commission (MIC) of the Russian Federation, member of the Advisory Scientific Council of the Skolkovo Foundation.

He has a fairly close relationship with the president of the Kurchatov Institute, Mikhail Kovalchuk, whose brother is in the inner circle of Vladimir Putin, and is also on the US and EU personal sanctions list. As for Mikhail Kovalchuk, he himself sought to head the Russian Academy of Sciences in 2008, but the members of the Academy did not elect him not only to the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, but also to the academicians. On the other hand, Vladislav Panchenko is not supported by the assistant to the President of the Russian Federation, the former Minister of Science and Education Andrei Fursenko. The main problem for his election is the withdrawal of his candidacy from the failed elections in March this year (though under pressure from circumstances and the administration of the President of the Russian Federation). At a meeting of candidates with Vladimir Putin, he spoke in favor of retaining in the new law on the election of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences the procedure for coordinating candidates with the Government of the Russian Federation.

3. Kablov Evgeny Nikolaevich (nominated by the Bureau of the Department of Chemistry and Materials Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences and 133 members of the Academy), born in 1952, 65 years old, scientist in the field of materials science, in particular, materials for aviation and space technology, General Director of the All-Russian Institute of Aviation Materials, member of the Board of Trustees of the Advanced Research Foundation, member of the Presidium of the Scientific Council under the Security Council of the Russian Federation, member of the Scientific and Technical Council of the Military Industrial Complex of the Russian Federation, member of the RFBR Council, member of the Aviation Collegium under the Government of the Russian Federation, President of the Association of State scientific centers RF.

He is a typical representative of the directors of the military-industrial research institutes of the school of the Stalin era, he is power-hungry, he considers only his own opinion correct. In his own presentation on the website of the Russian Academy of Sciences, a clear bias towards organizational, military-industrial and financial activities, at which for scientific work there just isn't time. The main problem for the election is the lack of experience in the RAS and a clear focus on the military industry, which could be disastrous for the RAS if elected. Apparently, it has the strong support of the military-industrial complex and the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation. At a meeting of candidates with Vladimir Putin, he spoke in favor of retaining in the new law on the election of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences the procedure for coordinating candidates with the Government of the Russian Federation.

4. Sergeev Alexander Mikhailovich (nominated by the Bureau of the Departments of Physical Sciences, Energy, Mechanical Engineering, Mechanics and Control Processes, Biological Sciences, by the Presidium of the Ural Branch and 238 members), born in 1955, 62 years old, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences since 2016, physicist, director of the Institute of Applied Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences (since 2015), Professor of the Nizhny Novgorod state university them. N.I. Lobachevsky, represents Russia in the International Committee on High Power Lasers ICUIL and was elected Vice Chairman of this organization.

Apparently, he is a protege of the departed President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vladimir Fortov and his team. This also explains his numerous nominations, because. almost all the leaders and members of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences worked in his favor. If he is elected, most of the leadership positions will not change, just like the style of work and the course of the RAS. The main problem for the election is the too short period that has passed since the election as an academician and director of the Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, as well as the lack of work experience in intra-academic elective positions. He was never elected either to the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences, or even to the Bureau of the Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

5. Gennady Yakovlevich Krasnikov (nominated by the Bureau of the Social Sciences Department of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Presidiums of the Far Eastern and Siberian Branches of the Russian Academy of Sciences and 122 members), born in 1958, 59 years old, General Director of JSC NIIME, Chairman of the Board of Directors of PJSC Mikron, Head of the Interdepartmental Council of Chief Designers in Electronic Component Base of the Russian Federation, member of the Advisory Scientific Council of the Skolkovo Innovation Center.

The strangest and most unexpected candidate. Apparently, he is a protege of the military-industrial complex of the Russian Federation and the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation. At a meeting of candidates with Vladimir Putin, he spoke in favor of retaining in the new law on the election of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences the procedure for coordinating candidates with the Government of the Russian Federation. The main problems for his election are the lack of nomination from his own Department, as well as the lack of work experience, both in the institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences and in internal academic elective positions - he was never elected either to the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences, or even to the members of the Bureau of the Branch RAN. He carefully hides and drapes his "scientific biography". So in his official presentation on the website of the Russian Academy of Sciences, he modestly writes “having successively passed all the posts, in 1987. became Deputy General Director", but in fact, he came to work at NIIME and the Mikron plant as an engineer in 1981, and in the same year he was appointed (elected) to the position of the released secretary of the NIIME Komsomol committee and the Mikron plant . After working in this pseudo-scientific position for two years, for unknown merits, he immediately receives the position of lead engineer, where he worked for less than a year and was appointed shop manager of the Mikron plant, three years later he was appointed deputy chief engineer of the Mikron plant, and a year later - Deputy Director for Production - Commercial Director of the Mikron plant. In the 90s, he bought up privatization vouchers from the workers of the plant and really appointed himself the General Director of the Joint Stock Company NIIME and the Mikron Plant! Having profitably sold his stake in AFK Sistema to Vladimir Yevtushenkov, he became one of the top managers of the corporation, holding various high business management positions. Interest in scientific activity woke up in him only in the position of General Director. It was then that he “wrote and defended” both of his dissertations, and after defending his doctoral dissertation in 1996, he was immediately elected a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (31.05.1997) six months later (31.05.1997), and a year later he received the “crust” of a professor! With the title of academician, it was a little more difficult, but this milestone was also taken in 2006. Now a new goal has been set - to become the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences! Will the factory guy turned oligarch be able to achieve it?

The real balance of power and the chances of candidates for election

All candidates can be conditionally divided into three groups: veterans, typical academics and strange candidates (military industrialist and oligarch businessman).

Veterans: Robert Nigmatulin actually has no chance of being elected because of his age and biography.

Typical academicians: Vladislav Panchenko and Alexander Sergeev have approximately equal chances of being elected.

Strange candidates: military industrialist Yevgeny Kablov and businessman-oligarch Gennady Krasnikov are likely to be ambiguously perceived by the academic community.

How will the fight end?

In the event that one of the typical academicians is elected, it is quite simple to predict the fate of the RAS: Alexander Sergeev - there is little that will fundamentally change at the Academy. With the possible election of Vladislav Panchenko, most likely, a soft, cautious and pragmatic reform of the RAS will follow.

If Yevgeny Kablov is elected, the work of the institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences will be strictly focused on achieving specific results and their implementation in the military industry. It will tighten labor discipline, normalize scientific activity and restructure the system of institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences, mercilessly freeing itself from "ballast". Freedom-loving members of the Russian Academy of Sciences will have to come to work strictly by 9.00, be present at the workplace strictly until 18.00. and write many reports. In other words, the RAS is waiting for tough industrialization-militarization!

What awaits the RAS if Gennady Krasnikov is elected? Most likely active commercialization in the form of privatization, sale of assets and conversion of all achievements into dollars!

On September 25–27, during the General Meeting, elections of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences should be held
(RAS), the outcome of which (unlike presidential elections) no one can predict. As the academicians themselves say, there are only two main options: either a candidate pleasing to the government and the gravedigger of Russian science, presidential aide Andrei Fursenko will be chosen, or officials will do everything to prevent the elections from taking place or being declared invalid.

For three academically

Recall that scientists have already tried this spring to choose "the first among equals." But all three applicants suddenly recused themselves at the very last moment, causing a lot of caustic and condemning remarks among their colleagues. And only after some time it became known that the then president of the Russian Academy of Sciences - a world famous scientist (and the most real contender for the post of president of the Russian Academy of Sciences) Vladimir Fortov they called him to large offices and sternly asked him to withdraw his candidacy. At first, Fortov refused, but they know how to convince “there”. As a result compromise solution all candidates asked to "resign", and the elections did not take place.

Meanwhile, the government vice-premier and chess player who oversees Russian science Arkady Dvorkovich courtesy of Assistant to the President for Science Fursenko and director of the Kurchatov Institute M. Kovalchuk pushed through the obedient State Duma an elementary "two-move" - ​​new election rules and the approval of the country's chief scientist.

Their essence is that from now on and forever the candidates selected by the academy itself must be coordinated by scientifically illiterate "lawyers and economists" from the White House. And the owner of the Kremlin should approve the new president of the Russian Academy of Sciences. If he does not like the candidate chosen by the academicians, he appoints his own.

Scientists reared on their hind legs from such changes, but who will listen to them - sick people? “This is such a municipal filter, taken from the so-called Russian big politics. Unwanted and uncontrollable not to let even close. Everyone and everything should be under control,” commented “ AN» the initiative of one of the academicians.

Seven brave

This legislative mine exploded in the new presidential elections of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Initially, the colleagues in science nominated seven candidates - academicians of the Russian Academy of Sciences: Alexander Sergeev(nominated by several departments and 240 members of the RAS); Vladislav Panchenko(by branches of the Russian Academy of Sciences and 153 members); Gennady Krasnikov(by branches of the Russian Academy of Sciences and 122 members); Evgeny Kablov(nominated by the Bureau of the Department of Chemistry and Materials Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences and 133 members); Valery Chereshnev(Department of Physiological Sciences RAS and 78 members); Robert Nigmatulin(nominated by 129 members of the RAS) and Alexey Khokhlov(“for” - 96 members of the Russian Academy of Sciences).

When the “seven brave ones” got to the “mysterious government agreement”, then everything was like in an old English rhyme:

Seven stupid blacks decided to get into an oak,

One of them fell - and there were six of them.

Six blacks from the bees decided to take a honey,

One was bitten - and there were five of them.

Alexey Khokhlov and Valery Chereshnev humiliatingly and without explaining the motives, the government simply did not agree. Moreover, Alexei Removich Khokhlov, being Vice-Rector of Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov and the head of the laboratory of physical chemistry of polymers of the Institute of Organoelement Compounds of the Russian Academy of Sciences, was considered one of the favorites of the upcoming elections. He was one of the first to present his program for the revival of the Russian Academy of Sciences "from below". I took into account more than a thousand (!) Comments and reviews from colleagues in the shop. In the scientific community, he is called "a strong fighter and an opponent to those lobbyists who dream of making the RAS just a "club of scientists" that does not influence anything or anyone." Apparently, for this, the unnamed “government bees” bit him to death.

There are five left

After Khokhlov was removed from the pre-election race, two candidates are named as favorites: Academician Alexander Sergeev, Director of the Institute of Applied Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Nizhny Novgorod), and Scientific Director of the Institute of Problems of Laser and Information Technologies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Institute molecular physics Research Center (NRC) "Kurchatov Institute" (according to the website of the Russian Academy of Sciences), Chairman of the Board of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR) Academician Vladislav Panchenko.

The academic community will vote for Sergeev, because in this environment, they are valued not for proximity to the current temporary power figures, but for real scientific achievements. They also say that his candidacy is supported by the deputy head of the presidential administration Sergei Kirienko, with which he has known since the beginning of the 2000s, when Kiriyenko served as the presidential plenipotentiary in the Volga Federal District. And the Institute of Applied Physics has good scientific ties with Rosatom.

Behind Panchenko's back, one can clearly read the trail of figures, to put it mildly, unloved by scientists: the president of the National Research Center "Kurchatov Institute" Mikhail Kovalchuk and "executioner" Fursenko. These two in the Russian Academy of Sciences, not without reason, are considered the ideological inspirers of the murderous reform of the academy, carried out in 2013. And conceived and implemented out of personal revenge. Kovalchuk was rolled several times in the elections for full members of the Russian Academy of Sciences. And the presidential aide, notorious for the phrase: “We don’t need creators, we need qualified consumers” and attempts to cancel the Russian language and mathematics in high school, had a very difficult relationship with his father e_SNbS-Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR and brilliant historian Alexander Fursenko.

Against the academic Robert Nigmatulin plays age - 77 years, and according to the current regulation on elections, there is an age limit (75 years). Although Robert Iskandrovich himself thinks differently: “There are no age restrictions in federal law No. 253. They are only in the Charter of the Russian Academy of Sciences. We must ensure that all these formal age limits are abolished.” For - his merciless criticism (including in the "AN") of the current economic course of the government. And the great contribution to the development of the Arctic made by the scientists of the Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences headed by him.

Behind the General Director of the All-Russian Institute of Aviation Materials Academician Evgeny Kablov the OPK lobby is clearly visible. But his position, expressed several years ago in an interview with our newspaper, can only be welcomed. So, answering a question about the role of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Academician Kablov spoke unambiguously: “Almost none. It is necessary to urgently and dramatically change the role and status of the RAS. It is necessary to return those rights that have always been. It is the academy that should give the final conclusion on the scientific validity and technological feasibility of any major state project.”

– In Soviet times, a special commission of the Academy of Sciences worked under the direction of Academician Vladimir Kotelnikov to which all ministries, including the State Planning Commission, were subordinate. They made a scientific and technological forecast, analyzed the entire situation in the field of science and technology, and together with the committee on science and technology prepared development prospects. And this scientific opinion independently went to the government, bypassing the officials. Based on this forecast, a national economic plan was developed for five years of the country's development. Now this is not. Absolutely not.

Back in December 2007, I told President Vladimir Putin: how can we develop when there is no strategy for the development of the country, no scientific and technological forecast? What prospects can we talk about if the authorities do not even understand where the country is going added the academician.

Academician Gennady Krasnikov, General Director of JSC Research Institute of Molecular Electronics, Chairman of the Board of Directors of PJSC Mikron, is also considered a creature of the military-industrial complex. Although, unlike Kablov, it is supported not by the conservative, but by the liberal part of the military-industrial complex. This is also evidenced by his connections with the so-called. Skolkovo Innovation Center and AFK Sistema. According to open media reports, at the beginning of his career, he worked as a released Komsomol leader, then successively rose to the commercial director and, having bought privatization vouchers, became the general director of the joint-stock company NIIME and the Mikron plant. The block of shares subsequently ended up with the now disgraced "system specialist" Vladimir Evtushenkov. Krasnikov in the academic environment is called Panchenko's understudy.

By the way, both of these "comrades" actively supported the approval of candidates for the presidency of the academy by government officials. And synchronously refused to debate with the rest of the contenders.

So don't give it to anyone

As several academicians told AN, on the eve of the General Assembly of the Russian Academy of Sciences, at which the elections are to be held, pressure “on the “voters” began. In various ways they try to persuade to vote either Panchenko or Krasnikov. At the same time, they say that even if Sergeev is elected president of the academy, Vladimir Putin, they say, will not approve him. This means that we will have to start all over again - by washing or skating, but all the same, "we will achieve our goal." At the same time, venerable scientists add that “ elections can be disrupted due to the fact that they do not collect a quorum. Many colleagues have already decided for themselves not to travel and not to participate in this performance.”

Oil is added to the fire of “elections without a choice” by the statements of the informal club of academicians “July 1”, which was formed after the 2013 reform. One of them directly states: “These norms (on agreement with the government. - Ed.) turn our right to elect the president of the Russian Academy of Sciences into a sham, replace them with an actual appointment, and make participation in voting pointless.” The letter is signed by more than 100 academicians and corresponding members of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

In a word, the vile bureaucratic fuss around the post of president of the academy directly indicates that the fundamental Russian science either at instigation from across the ocean, or because of personal unsatisfied teenage ambitions, they want to finish off completely and irrevocably. How they beat the "thugs" lying in the alley.

Therefore, no matter who becomes the new head of the Russian Academy of Sciences, you will not envy him. Either you have to go down in history as a gravedigger of the academy and the future of the country, or: “The last Negro looked tired, he went and hanged himself, and there was no one” ...