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Five scientists led by John Holdren, from Harvard University and former advisor to President Obama, have written a letter in the magazine ‘Science’ in which they urge governments and the scientific and technological communities of Western countries to avoid rejecting all Russian scientists for the actions of their government. “Closing all interaction would be a serious setback for a variety of Western and global interests and values,” they say, while recalling how many of them have shown their rejection of the invasion. In the same text, they ask to oppose “stereotypes and indiscriminate persecution.”
The text, in addition to Holdren, is signed by the bioscientist Nicholas Talbot, from the Sainsbury Laboratory at the University of Cambridge (United Kingdom); Neal Lane, a physicist at Rice University (USA); Toby Spribille, professor of biological sciences at Alberta (Canada); and Nina Fedoroff, molecular biologist at Pennsylvania State University (USA).
The authors say that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “brutal and unprovoked” war is an “abomination” that justifies all sanctions taken by Western countries. And they welcome the outpouring of support for Ukrainian scientists, including the introduction of protected visa status. But they do not want to forget their Russian colleagues.
“Understandably, almost all government-to-government collaboration is on hold now, but not all engagement with Russian scientists should be,” they note. In his opinion, closing off all interaction with Russian scientists would be a serious setback for a variety of Western and global interests and values, including advancing many challenges related to science and technology.
The researchers indicate that many thousands of Russian academics and students live and work in the West. Many of them have criticized the Putin government in the media or have signed widely publicized statements by Russian academics and intellectuals denouncing the Russian invasion. “Surely these Russians should not be lumped together with the leaders of the Russian state. Rather, humanitarian measures must be taken to ensure that when their visas and passports expire, they are not forcibly repatriated to face not only isolation from their Western colleagues but also, quite possibly, persecution.
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