The Taiwan issue will not lose its relevance in the foreseeable future. This tug of war in the Taiwan Strait between the US and China is getting closer and closer to the parties’ red lines. In this regard, this Midweek Brainstorming Session of PIR Center may be of help in developing Russian policy in this area. The historical digression into Taiwan’s nuclear program, as well as the analysis of domestic political factors, was very valuable. In this regard, one should note the high level of discussion that the report provoked: very sensible comments were made, and key technical aspects highlighted that are worth focusing on. In the context of assessing nuclear proliferation threats, such a warning shot by PIR Center was very timely and helped keep the focus on the state of the nonproliferation regime both in the Asia-Pacific region and on a global scale. Despite the low risks of nuclear proliferation on the island, it became clear this is not the time to relax. Therefore, while the eyes of the world media are not focused on Taiwan at all, it was particularly relevant to listen to a detailed and high-quality analysis of the island’s nuclear potential.
Maxim P. Lats
Master’s student at Saint Petersburg State University
1-2 times a month
experts, analysts, civil servants, business, journalists, students, young scientists
Three main formats: – expert seminars; – defense of the research work of the trainee & discussion; – “private brainstorming”
Midweek Brainstorming Sessions have a long history and have managed to establish themselves as a platform for expert discussion of acute and fundamental problems of global security. Once or twice a month, experts and analysts, civil servants and businessmen, students and young scientists, journalists brainstorm on various topics, engage in polemics and discussion, present their vision of a particular problem on the global security agenda. Midweek Brainstorming Sessions are open and trusting conversations about what is important and necessary. “It’s useful, some new thoughts have come in,” — this is the main criterion of success for the organizers of Midweek Brainstorming Sessions.
One of the formats of Midweek Brainstorming Sessions is the defence of the research works of the young generation of PIR Community members, our interns and trainees, who present the results of their scientific activities at PIR Center. As a rule, the defense takes place on a topic on which there are not enough experts. But there are always “masters” participating in the defense who can suggest what and where else to search, what to remove and add, and the best way to do it. If the result of the defense is positive, the intern’s research paper can be recommended for publication. Following this discussion, the article by even a novice expert will take a worthy place among the works of well-known professionals.
Today we live in an extremely interesting era, when right before our eyes the emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), are radically changing not only the landscape of our daily lives, but also the current world order along with methods of warfare. Within the framework of the seminar, the leading expert and researcher on the military application of AI, Vadim Kozyulin, presented his fresh professional view on the international legal, military-political, and ethical problems of using AI for military purposes, touching upon the “evolution” of modern conflicts with the introduction of autonomous combat systems and outlining the risks for which the international community needs to prepare. Once again, I was reassured that PIR Center and its team are at the forefront of the process of solving not only existing, but also prospective problems of global security, and discussing ideas that are ahead of their time.
Sergey A. Sebekin
Ph.D. on History, lecturer at the Department of Political Science, History and Regional Studies, Irkutsk State University
By visiting Midweek Brainstorming Sessions, you can become part of…
Scientific premiere at the PIR Center platform and debut of novice researchers
Free exchange of views on key and most pressing issues of the current global security agenda
Meetings with colleagues and new interesting people, like-minded people and potential partners
Scientific debuts and a meeting of coryphaeus in the field of nuclear nonproliferation, disarmament and global security are the reason Midweek Brainstorming Sessions are widely known and popular in the Russian and foreign expert communities.
