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Minister for Research Sebastian Burduja, speaking after attending on Friday the informal meeting of the European Ministers for Research and Innovation organized in Prague under the auspices of the Czech Presidency of the Council of the European Union, said that he found openness for the inclusion of Romania in the Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI) European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC).
"The colleagues from Hungary and the Czech Republic appreciated Romania's stance and the progress made in recent months, including the opening, in a first-time initiative based on a protocol, of the infrastructure at the Magurele facility to ELI-ERIC researchers. In bilateral talks we approached the organization of a trilateral meeting this fall, an essential step in Romania's effort to return to ELI-ERIC. We have therefore found openness to Romania's joining the European consortium, where we belong," Sebastian Burduja said according to release issued on Friday, Agerpres.ro informs.
The Romanian Minister for Research welcomed the initiative of the Czech EU Presidency to propose a Declaration on Synergies in the Research and Innovation Funding in Europe, expressing Romania's position based on four key elements:
- the development of partnerships and best practice exchanges, especially for major research projects, such as the European ELI project;
- flexibility and setting an optimal balance between strict regulations for spending European money and encouraging innovative research projects, including completely new ones that cannot follow a standard recipe, as is the case with ELI;
- priority support for young researchers and finding solutions to facilitate the circulation of young talents within the Union;
- a common voice of Research ministers at European level to strengthen future support to research and innovation, including as a solution to the multiple present crises (security, energy crisis, etc.)
Also, Burduja said that he had an "excellent discussion" with European Commissioner for Research Mariya Gabriel about talent mobility in the EU, new technologies and their transposition into the economy, as well as about a visit of the EU official to Bucharest in the next period.
Regarding support to Ukraine, Sebastian Burduja launched a call to the European Research ministers not to make any concessions to the regime in Moscow, reaffirming Romania's commitment to supporting Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova's accession efforts, including through their fast-track integration into the European research space, the release also notes.
