On November 11, 2021, H.E. Dr. Sergiy Korsunsky, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Japan, visited the IER
On November 11, 2021, H.E. Dr. Sergiy Korsunsky, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Japan, and Mrs. Inna Irina, Third Secretary of the Embassy visited the IER. Ambassador Korsunsky is an expert in a wide range of fields including energy, especially on geopolitical issues. Introduced by his former colleague, Dr. Zheleznyak, currently a Project Professor of the IER, he visited the IER in 2016 as ‘Ambassador at large’. This time, the Ambassador Korsunsky paid a courtesy visit to President Miura of Fukushima University and then had a discussion with SATREPS Chernobyl project members at the IER.
Ambassador Korsunsky and President Miura talked about the cooperative relationship between Ukraine and Fukushima University. The President expressed his gratitude to Ukraine for accepting a survey team from Fukushima University in 2011 and sending their experts to Fukushima, when Fukushima University had no radiation experts at the time of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. Ambassador said that although the nuclear accidents both in Fukushima and Chernobyl were very tragic, the Ukrainian government has been supporting the joint research among Fukushima University and Ukrainian institutions, such as the SATREPS Chernobyl project, in the belief that appropriate efforts based on the experience of accidents would provide valuable knowledge for future countermeasures. He expressed his intention to continue the support.
The discussion expanded to the topics of arts and culture of the two countries, and President Miura introduced his own experience that he realized the great power of art in the reconstruction process when he was working on the education of children after the Great East Japan Earthquake. He shared with the Ambassador the understanding that heart-to-heart communication brought about by art leads to hope. This led to an idea of considering new academic exchanges between Ukraine and Fukushima University in the field of art and related humanistic research.
At the IER, the ambassador had a discussion with the members of SATREPS Chernobyl project currently going on in Ukraine. IER Director Nanba introduced its current status and future prospects, and the Ambassador gave an encouraging comment that the research activities of the IER and SATREPS Chernobyl project are very important initiatives not only for Ukraine and Japan but also for the whole world. He also pointed out the need to understand and analyze the global trends in energy in the era of carbon neutrality and to envision the future with these trends in mind.
All the members reaffirmed their commitment to complete the ongoing project and continue constructive efforts for the next project concept, and expressed their gratitude to the Ambassador for his sincere advice and full cooperation.