Translated material
The overthrow of Fortov
This article is an attempt to restore in chronological order according to publications in the media and eyewitnesses, as the overthrow of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vladimir Fortov was conceived. Apparently, this special operation began to be developed back in November-December 2016.
Recall that in October 2016, elections were held at the general meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences, after which serious criticism was hit by the Academy of Sciences for electing not only strong, but also very weak scientists, someone’s relatives or officials. To some extent, this criticism was fair, although many members of the Academy believed that the situation was in the usual framework. It seems that Fortov and his colleagues did everything to earn the loyalty of the branches, without interfering and indulging all their wishes, and this subsequently played a cruel joke with them.
On November 23, 2016, a meeting of the Council on Science was held, at which Russian President Vladimir Putin sharply criticized Fortov that government officials were elected to the Academy [1]. When at the March general meeting I asked one former official, who suffered from the wrath of the country's president, was Putin’s instructions not to go to the polls, he said that he could not discuss the document for official use. But he made it clear that such a document was really, but that he considered his membership in the Russian Academy of Sciences more important than the work of the State Proposure.
In the course of a meeting of the Council on Science, it became clear that the President of the Russian Federation very painfully perceived the likely disobedience of officials, this superimposed his growing dissatisfaction with the activities of academicians and Fortov himself and, possibly, finally decided fate, if not the entire academy, then, however, at that time, few understood.
Since the end of December, a discussion of candidates for the president of the Russian Academy of Sciences began, and for some time Vladimir Fortov remained the only candidate. Almost all wound departments supported him. To this, the team of the Assistant President of the Russian Federation, the former Minister of Education and Science Andrei Fursenko, apparently could not look calmly, because Fortov took a definite negative position regarding the “reform” of 2013, which was exercised by the Academy of Sciences. The main meaning of this reform is to put the activities of scientists under the full control of officials. They say that it was Fursenko that was one of the main coordinators of those changes. In addition, senior officials believed that the leadership of the Academy of Sciences did not take the necessary steps to reform the Russian Academy of Sciences and opposed the fact that he was taking the country's leadership in the field of science.
At the end of January, four academicians were invited to Andrei Fursenko: physicist Vladislav Panchenko, biologist Alexander Makarov, economist Alexander Dyunkin and astronomer Yuri Baleg. All of them were invited to nominate their candidates for president of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Balega refused and immediately after the meeting told V. Fortov about this, and he was no longer considered as useful for the purpose of the candidate. A cautious Pyunkin said that Panchenko would support, the protege of Evgeny Velikhov and Mikhail Kovalchuk.
Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, an expert in the field of materials science, Yevgeny Kablov, showed the initiative, ran for three departments, but did not go anywhere. The most acute struggle unfolded at the department of chemistry and sciences about materials. There he scored just one voice less than Fortov. The vote took place on February 2, 2017 and was a turning point. It is believed that if, in addition to Panchenko and Makarov, there were also Kablov, then Fortov’s opponents had a chance. As a result, in the last week of submission of documents, only Vladislav Panchenko and Alexander Makarov managed to “jump” into the train traveling to the presidency of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Director of the Institute of Molecular Biology. V. A. Engelhardt RAS Alexander Makarov had to run not from biologists, but from the department of medical sciences, since biologists have already supported Fortov. The Chairman of the Council of the RFF RFF PANCHENKO was nominated by his native department of nano and information technologies and the separation of global problems and international relations, whose academician secretary is Alexander Dyunkin.
Panchenko, Makarov and colleagues supporting them, immediately began to bother the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences with complaints and doubts about the presidential election procedure. The result was the Decree of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences of February 21, 2017 on a change in the agenda of the general meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences. At the same meeting of the Presidium, according to the election, a secret vote took place, where Fortov received a clear majority: 43 members of the Presidium voted for Fortov, 5 people each for Panchenko and Makarov. It was the surname of Fortov that was supposed to be included in the ballot for secret voting at the general meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences under the first number
All these events, apparently, became the last in the chain of those that forced Andrei Fursenko’s team to act. On March 14, a press conference of the Director General of the RNF Alexander Khlunov was to be held, but suddenly it was canceled. The next day, on Tuesday, a meeting of Vladimir Putin with Andrei Fursenko and Alexander Khlunov took place. According to official reports [2], it was devoted to the discussion of the further implementation of the program of megagrators and grants for young scientists for conducting research.
Until Thursday, the situation remained outwardly calm, Forters and his colleagues prepared a general meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences, asked for certain speakers to prepare performances.
In addition, at least one of the candidates - Vladislav Panchenko - on Thursday, March 16, asked his colleagues for wounds to send offers and additions to his predicate program. But on Friday, March 17, the usual rhythm was broken. They say that early in the morning the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences walked for a long time with some official, then he was taken to the Kremlin by car. A few hours later he returned, and the friends of Vladimir Evgenievich found out that his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin took place, he refused Fortov in trust and demanded election. Fortov spoke about this, in particular, to the academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vladimir Zakharov, and he reported this in the club "July 1". Club members transferred this information to reporters. Scientific journalist Olga Orlova wrote about this on her Facebook. Immediately, reposts in social networks and media publications with messages with links to blogs and official refutations went. Fortov’s environment “stood on my ears” from constant tension in an attempt to defend some position.
On Sunday, March 19, a final meeting of three candidates took place, at which there was a discussion in what order they would take off their candidates at the general meeting and what they would say. The very formulation of the question indicates a low level of trust between the parties. They say that the head of the presidential administration Anton Vaino directly participated in these negotiations.
There is evidence that even until the morning of March 20 it was clear whether the “fortress of Fortov” surrendered or not and how Vladimir Evgenievich would behave. Of course, the fundamental decision has already taken place on Friday and forts made it, but some details were discussed until the morning of the general meeting. According to one version, the threat of criminal prosecution for violations in the economic activities of the Institute of Heatophysics of the Extreme States of the Russian Academy of Sciences was used as an argument for pressure. “He could be charged,” one of the members of the Russian Academy of Sciences told me. “But he would not have been imprisoned anyway.” They also say that Fortov was threatened by the fact that the founder will dissolve the wounds as a state budget institution, and the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences replied that he could not think about it and withdraw his candidacy. One way or another, Vladimir Evgenievich lost to pressure. “He should not succumb to blackmail,” say some members of the Russian Academy of Sciences. “Anyone would not stand it in his place,” others say. But there is reason to believe that the pressure of the highest state officials on the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences was unprecedented.
On the eve of March 19, a meeting of the club “July 1” was held, in which a member of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences Gennady month and several other members of the Presidium took part. At the meeting, its participants decided that it was necessary to initiate the elections of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the old composition, since otherwise the Academy after March 27 would remain without leadership. According to the club members, this did not contradict the charter of the Academy at all: the proposal for the composition of the Presidium was to be made by the current president (the charter does not stipulate that it should be again elected), which the forts remained at that moment, the procedure for extending authority is not provided for by the charter. This proposal by telephone was supported by both the chief scientist M. A. Paltsov and most of the Academicians-secretaries of the departments. To make such a proposal was entrusted with a member of the Russian RAS, Askold Ivanchik.
On March 20, on the eve of the beginning of the general meeting, he went to Fortov, and the Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich was already sitting next to him. Ivanchik outlined him the essence of his sentence, asking for words during the meeting. Fortov said that there is no need to speak with such an initiative and he would not offer anyone to the Presidium. The emotions of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences beat the edge. “You insert a knife to me,” he told Askold Ivanchik. Sitting Nearby Dvorkovich listened to all this with a smile. Shortly before the forts, the Acad was equally emotionally refused the same request. V.A. Rubakov.
The meeting began, and further, as it was decided the day before, the candidates performed alphabetically and, one after another, withdrew their candidates from the elections. Makarov and Panchenko members of the general meeting asked for argumentation, but they did not answer. One Fortov noted that it is necessary to eliminate “inconsistencies and inaccuracies” in the election procedure, which were indicated by the “initiative group of comrades”.
The very strange, knocking out of the general atmosphere of Fortov’s support was the performance of the vice president of the Russian Academy of Sciences Ivan Dedov. He collapsed with a sharp criticism of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences, noting that he did almost nothing. Meanwhile, his colleagues in the Presidium noticed that Ivan Ivanovich himself visited five of more than a hundred past meetings. The version appeared that it was grandfathers (born in 1941), the former head of the RAMS, that could become the future president of the Russian Academy of Sciences, but it contradicts the fact that he is 76 years old, and according to the charter, the maximum age for the head of the academy is 75 years.
Before the general meeting, I asked Valery Kozlov Vice President Vice President, whether he would become and. O. President of the Russian Academy of Sciences. He said that for the first time he hears about it, but then he remarked: "Let's wait for official news." His colleagues the day before said that Kozlov refused the post and even tried to take off this burden on the general meeting on the General Meeting. “The president demanded to restore the vertical of power,” one major academic official told me immediately after the general meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences. He was very pleased that the meeting ended so quickly and quite smoothly and managed to maintain controllability with such a large hall. Perhaps if the participants in the general meeting found out that the authorities have plans to radically change the system of elections of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, then the discussion would be more hot and its result would not be so clear.
On March 22, Vladimir Fortov signed an order of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences, according to which the performance of the duties of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences for a period of six months (until September 28, 2017) is entrusted to the vice president of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Academician Valery Kozlov.
On March 23, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev signed an order to release V.E. Fortov "from the post of President of the Russian Academy of Sciences on March 23, 2017 at his request." This document also agrees with the proposal of Fortov on the assignment of the duties of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences at the Vice President of the Russian Academy of Sciences V.V. Kozlov since March 24, 2017 [3].
On March 22, Vladimir Fortov also signed an order according to which, in accordance with the decision of the general meeting of members of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the powers of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences, vice-presidents of the Russian Academy of Sciences and chief scientist secretary of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences “for the period before the new election of the leadership of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the prescribed manner” are extended. To this time, it is not known whether the elections of the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences will take place in the eight months in a slightly updated procedure, or the country's leadership will decide to introduce the very vertical of power that has already been introduced in other state institutions. Whether the Academy of Sciences will preserve self -government, or the intrigue of several academicians and the team Andrei Fursenko will make RAS a fully controlled institution will tell time.
Natalia Demina
1. Http://kremlin.ru/events/president/news/53313
2. Http://kremlin.ru/events/president/news/54047
3. Http://govenment.ru/docs/26867/
From the speech of the Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, a member of the Presidium of Gennady the month at the General Assembly of the Russian Academy of Sciences on March 20, 2017:
“I, as a witness of what was happening, can completely agree with those who said that it was a carefully thought out special operation. I was a witness, as it was discussed several times at the Presidiums, at the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, I witnessed what was yesterday (on Sunday, March 19) ... I know only one very simple thing. On Friday, at 9 in the morning, a car arrived for Vladimir Evgenievich, and he left. He returned to half of the second and said what was happening ...
I completely agree with the assessment that is expressed here to Fursenko. Fursenko came to the Minister in 2004, and in 2005-2006 he issued his first “great” idea that 100-200 institutions should remain in Russia. He lives with this great idea for a long, long time, and even a figure of 50-60 sounded at one presidential council. This means that we still have ahead.
How will they combine us? I think that Academician Zakharov correctly says: we will be united as recorded in the newspaper Izvestia in the article “We are witnesses to the great merging of sciences” (as amended by M. Kovalchuk of March 15, 2017 [1]). Yesterday, in the July 1 club, we discussed this, and the phrase “Great Dragging of Science” arose. If you follow the path of the great draining of science, then it will be: 150-200 institutions, and what will happen to them, no one knows ...
I think that the reform of 2013, carried out in the form of a blitzkrieg, and what is happening now is the links of one chain ... We cannot feel all the time in something guilty, we cannot consider that we did not do something and did not make something. I believe that those present here are an outstanding scientific community of Russia and the world. These are people who, of course, are patriots. And we are witnesses of how the enemies of the nation from real patriots. I don't understand ... We are not dissidents! Why do they do this?
... We must, of course, thank the academician Fortov for the courage that he showed. And when it seemed that it was wrong and that was not so, it was actually a manifestation of his wisdom, thanks to which we are the Academy and we retained it. (Applause.)
