President of Tsinghua University, Academician Li Luming, visited SPbPU

On June 3, a delegation from Tsinghua University headed by the university president, member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, leading scientist in the field of biomechanics and neuromodulation, Professor Li Luming, visited Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University (SPbPU).

The visit of the head of one of the world’s leading universities became an important event for the development of Russian‑Chinese scientific and educational cooperation and confirmed the special strategic nature of relations between SPbPU and Tsinghua University. Tsinghua University is among the most authoritative higher education institutions in China and the world, bringing together the strongest scientific schools in engineering, natural sciences, medicine, information technology, economics, humanities and social research.

The delegation of Tsinghua University was welcomed at Polytechnic University by the Rector of SPbPU, Chairman of the St. Petersburg Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vice‑President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Academician Andrei Rudskoi.

The visit program began on the historic campus of SPbPU. The guests toured the Main Building of the university, visited the White Hall, the Portrait Gallery and the Museum of the History of SPbPU.

The history of cooperation between SPbPU and Tsinghua University began in 1952. In the mid‑20th century, young scientists from Tsinghua University came to the Leningrad Polytechnic Institute named after M. I. Kalinin for postgraduate studies and internships. In 1987, LPI and Tsinghua University signed an Agreement on Scientific, Technical and Educational Partnership — the first direct agreement between universities of the USSR and the PRC. The original of this document in Russian and Chinese, signed by the heads of the universities — Yu. S. Vasilyev and Gao Jingde — is still kept in the SPbPU museum. In 2014, the relationship between the two universities reached the level of strategic partnership, and in subsequent years new agreements and work programs were signed covering a wide range of scientific and educational areas.

Today, SPbPU and Tsinghua University are developing cooperation in the fields of electronics and telecommunications, aerospace and electronic technologies, artificial intelligence, materials science, tribology, technospheric safety, energy, biomedicine, history and sociology.

The key event of the visit was the signing ceremony of a new Strategic Partnership Agreement between SPbPU and Tsinghua University. The document was signed by SPbPU Rector Andrei Rudskoi and President of Tsinghua University Li Luming. The ceremony was attended by members of the Tsinghua University delegation, members of the SPbPU Academic Council, Chinese students, postgraduates and young scientists studying and working at Polytechnic University.

Addressing the guests, Andrei Rudskoi noted that SPbPU highly values the long‑standing trust and partnership with Tsinghua University. It is a great honor for us to host the President of Tsinghua University — our esteemed strategic partner — at Polytechnic University. The history of cooperation between our universities began more than seven decades ago, and today we see that the academic ties established then have become a solid foundation for modern scientific projects, educational programs and new initiatives. I am confident that the signed agreement will give a new impetus to our partnership, said SPbPU Rector Andrei Rudskoi.

During the visit, the parties discussed prospects for further development of cooperation. Among the proposals are the training of highly qualified personnel on the basis of the laboratories of the two universities, the implementation of a visiting professors program, the creation of a Russian‑Chinese Center for Strategic Studies at SPbPU with the participation of Tsinghua University, as well as the joint design, development and preparation for launch of a small satellite (CubeSat) «Polytech‑Tsinghua». Special attention was paid to the development of academic mobility, joint programs for students and postgraduates, scientific internships and the participation of young researchers in international projects.

In response, Academician Li Luming emphasized: St. Petersburg Polytechnic University and Tsinghua University are united not only by common engineering achievements, but also by a colossal contribution to the modernization of our countries. Over 40 years of strategic partnership, we have created a very solid foundation for mutual respect, openness and practical results. I am convinced that a wide field for cooperation lies ahead, and I am ready, together with you, Andrei Ivanovich, and all colleagues, to work towards new goals in the name of education, science and innovation of China and Russia.

The visit of Professor Li Luming to SPbPU became a new stage in the development of the strategic partnership between the two universities. It confirmed the high mutual interest of Polytechnic University and Tsinghua University in expanding scientific, educational and technological cooperation, as well as their readiness to jointly shape a promising agenda for Russian‑Chinese university interaction.