On June 19-23, the TCEU-1 Section Head of the Department of Technical Cooperation of the IAEA Mr Jing Zhang visited Russia to meet with representatives of Rosatom State Corporation, Rosatom Technical Academy, Emergency Response Center of Rosatom, Peter the Great St.Petersburg Polytechnic University, National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI", as well as Moscow State University.
The parties discussed perspectives for cooperation within the framework of the IAEA technical cooperation projects in the field of nuclear infrastructure development, including the support of educational and scientific projects.
The IAEA delegates visited St. Petersburg and Moscow. In the St. Petersburg branch of the Rosatom Technical Academy, Mr Jing Zhang got acquainted with the Academy's capabilities and facilities for the training of NPP professional personnel; specifically, he learned about the analytical simulator, which is used to train the trainees to analyze in detail the importance of each system in the operation of the NPP. Later, the guests observed the permanent exhibition at the Public Information Center for Atomic Energy. At the end of the first day, the group visited the Emergency Response Center of Rosatom, where they met with the management of the organization as well as fellows who are enrolled in the joint IAEA Master's degree programme on Emergency Preparedness and Response for Nuclear and Radiological.
The second day was dedicated to the St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, where, together with representatives of the Rosatom, the delegates discussed common goals in the development of educational programmes. Mr Jing Zhang noted that an important part of the success of such programmes are students who come to gain knowledge from developing countries with long-term plans for the development of the nuclear industry, NPP construction and/or research in nuclear science and applications.
In Moscow, representatives of the IAEA visited the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI and Lomonosov Moscow State University, where possible areas of cooperation were considered. The universities demonstrated the facilities and equipment for the training of nuclear engineering students and shared their experience of interaction with other Departments of the Agency.
On the last day of the visit, the IAEA held consultations with representatives of the Rosatom State Corporation in the Moscow branch of Rosatom Technical Academy on issues of further cooperation within the framework of the extra-budgetary contribution of the Russian Federation for the implementation of IAEA technical cooperation projects for the development of nuclear infrastructure.
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The IAEA provides support to Member States in the field of practical application of nuclear sciences and technologies for sustainable socio-economic development. More than a hundred countries receive support through the IAEA Technical Cooperation Programme, which includes the supply of equipment, training and advanced training of specialists. In recent years, with the assistance of the Russian Federation, several regional and interregional projects have been launched and are being successfully implemented. In addition, since 2017, Russia has been extra-budgetary donor to the IAEA Technical Cooperation Fund: the annual voluntary contribution to the implementation of technical cooperation projects is up to 610 thousand euros.