Chinese-Russian cooperation reaches new heights: JITRI and TSARI delegation visits St. Petersburg Polytechnic University

A delegation from the Jiangsu Industrial Technology Research Institute (JITRI) and the Suzhou Automotive Research Institute of Tsinghua University (TSARI) arrived at Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University (SPbPU) to strengthen their strategic partnership.

The visit was led by JITRI First Deputy Director Gao Jun. China is a key partner of SPbPU: the university has more than 60 active agreements with Chinese universities and companies, including two large joint institutes in Jiangsu and Xi’an, where more than 1,000 students study. Today, 2,200 Chinese students study at SPbPU, accounting for almost half of the foreign contingent.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the expansion of academic mobility programs. Of particular interest was the JITRI Co-op internship program, which provides paid internships at leading Chinese research institutes and companies in the fields of new materials, information and communication technologies, energy, biotechnology, and advanced manufacturing. SPbPU expressed its readiness to organize an open competition among talented students and young scientists to participate in the program.

Scientific cooperation will also receive a boost: the parties agreed to intensify joint projects in the field of digital twins of power plants, artificial intelligence for industrial systems, and polymer composite materials. Three major projects are already underway, including a BRICS grant for sustainable development management with Nanjing University.

«Today, our laboratories are looking to the East,» said Dmitry Arseniev, Vice Rector for International Affairs at SPbPU. «China has not only caught up with the technological leaders, but is setting new standards, and SPbPU will orient students toward internships at JITRI in your laboratories and production facilities. This is a new vector: from SPbPU’s fundamental research to Chinese industrial practice.» In response, the JITRI delegation proposed creating working groups to develop specific initiatives, including joint seminars and the involvement of industrial partners.

Prospects for cooperation include the involvement of the Russian Academy of Sciences: SPbPU is closely associated with its St. Petersburg branch, which unites 50 research institutes. In 2023, SPbPU Rector and Chairman of the St. Petersburg Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences Andrei Rudskoi signed a cooperation agreement with Hu Jinbo, Director of the Shanghai Branch of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. «The doors of any institute of the Academy of Sciences are open to JITRI,» said Dmitry Arseniev, proposing to synchronize efforts with the Chinese Academy of Sciences. For operational work, the parties plan to hold a virtual round table in the coming months.