On April 23, 2026, a session of the General Assembly of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine took place, during which the results of the Academy's activities for 2025 were summarized and key directions for its further work were determined.
Before the meeting began, the leadership of the NAS of Ukraine, together with the session participants, honored the memory of the long-time President of the Academy, academician Borys Paton. Flowers were laid at his bust on Bohdan Khmelnytsky Street and in the Great Conference Hall of the NAS of Ukraine.
The session was opened by the President of the NAS of Ukraine, academician Anatoliy Zahorodniy. In his opening remarks, he emphasized that recent years have been a serious test for the Academy: full-scale war, losses, destruction of infrastructure, difficult conditions for researchers. At the same time, despite these challenges, research did not stop, and its results are increasingly finding practical application – in defense, energy, and the country's recovery. According to him, the demand for science itself has changed: it is expected not only to provide fundamental knowledge but also concrete solutions for the state. The President of the NAS of Ukraine also noted that 2025 was important for the internal development of the Academy – elections to its composition and governing bodies were held, and the Presidium was renewed. He separately thanked the Ukrainian military, who make it possible for scientists to continue their work even under such conditions.
Greetings to the participants of the General Assembly from the Office of the President of Ukraine were delivered by the Head of the Education and Science Department of the Main Directorate of Internal and Humanitarian Policy of the Directorate for Internal and Humanitarian Policy of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Svitlana Kretovych. She emphasized that Ukrainian science, even under wartime conditions, delivers practical results for defense, energy, medicine, and the country's recovery, while maintaining fundamental research, supporting young scientists, and developing international cooperation. She also stressed that the state highly values the contribution of the NAS of Ukraine to bringing victory closer and post-war recovery.
Next, the participants of the session were presented with the report "The Academy in a Time of Trials: Results of 2025 and Development Priorities." The President of the NAS of Ukraine, academician Anatoliy Zahorodniy, outlined the key results of the Academy's work for the year and defined tasks for the near future.
He focused on research for the security and defense sector, carried out, in particular, within the framework of the targeted defense research program: developments in unmanned systems, artificial intelligence, new materials, protective equipment, and military medicine. At the same time, scientists are working on solutions for energy, infrastructure restoration, environmental safety, and the agricultural sector. He also noted the results of fundamental research – in physical-mathematical, technical, natural, and social-humanitarian sciences, which are integrated into international projects.
Alongside the results, he drew attention to problematic issues requiring systemic solutions. These include limited funding, which mostly covers only current expenses, worn-out infrastructure and the need for its modernization, the consequences of destruction of energy and utility networks, as well as a difficult staffing situation – primarily the reduction in the number of young scientists.
Speaking about the main directions of the Academy's further activities, he emphasized the need to focus resources on areas critically important for the state: defense capability, energy independence, new materials, digital technologies, medicine, and environmental safety. At the same time, he stressed the importance of faster implementation of scientific results, closer interaction with the state, business, and communities, modernization of infrastructure, support for young scientists, development of international cooperation, and the Academy's openness to society.
In the discussion of the President of the NAS of Ukraine's report, the following spoke: Director of the Institute of Nuclear Safety Problems of the NAS of Ukraine, academician Anatoliy Nosovskyi, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Brigadier General Andriy Lebedenko, Deputy General Director for Development of JSC "Ukroboronprom" Oleh Huliak, academician-secretary of the Chemistry Department of the NAS of Ukraine, academician Petro Stryzhak, Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, Candidate of Physical and Mathematical Sciences Denys Kurbatov, Rector of V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Doctor of Law Tetyana Kahanovska, President of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, academician of the NAS and NAMS of Ukraine Vasyl Lazoryshynets, Advisor to the Rector of Ivano-Frankivsk National Technical University of Oil and Gas, academician of the NAS of Ukraine Yevstakhiy Kryzhanivskyi, Director of the Institute of Information Technologies and Systems of the NAS of Ukraine, Candidate of Technical Sciences Oleksandr Volkov, Director of the M. Ptukha Institute for Demography and Social Studies of the NAS of Ukraine, academician Ella Libanova, Head of the Western Scientific Center of the NAS and Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, academician Zinoviy Nazarchuk, academician-secretary of the Department of Energy and Energy Technologies of the NAS of Ukraine, academician Andriy Rusanov, Director of the V.M. Bakul Institute for Superhard Materials of the NAS of Ukraine, academician Volodymyr Turkevych, Head of Department of the Institute of Hydrobiology of the NAS of Ukraine, Corresponding Member of the NAS of Ukraine Dmytro Hudkov, Deputy General Director for Scientific Activities of LLC "Ukrinstalkon named after V.M. Shymanovsky," Doctor of Technical Sciences Vadym Hordeyev, Director of the Institute of the Ukrainian Language of the NAS of Ukraine, Doctor of Philological Sciences Pavlo Hrytsenko, Deputy Director of the I.F. Kuras Institute of Political and Ethnonational Studies of the NAS of Ukraine, Doctor of Historical Sciences Yuriy Nikolaets.
In the speeches of the discussion participants, the main focus was on issues directly defining the role of science in the conditions of war and the country's recovery: scientific support for the security and defense sector, development of defense technologies and cooperation with industry, resilience of the energy system, nuclear and man-made safety, demographic processes, and social stability. Special attention was paid to the interaction of the Academy with universities, business, and state structures, as well as the implementation of scientific results in production and public administration practice.
Based on the discussion results, the General Assembly of the NAS of Ukraine approved the Report on the Academy's activities in 2025, adopting the corresponding resolution.
An important part of the session was the recognition of scientists. The highest award of the NAS of Ukraine – the V.I. Vernadsky Gold Medal for the results of the 2025 competition was awarded to academician of the NAS of Ukraine Mykola Zhulynskyi and foreign member of the NAS of Ukraine Mark Pavlyshyn for their outstanding contribution to the development of Ukrainian literary studies and its establishment in the world. Awards named after prominent Ukrainian scientists for the best scientific works of 2025 were also presented. Laureates of the NAS of Ukraine Prize "For the Popularization of Science" were recognized for projects that open science to society and strengthen its presence in the public space.
Summarizing the session's work, the President of the NAS of Ukraine, Anatoliy Zahorodniy, noted that the discussion confirmed: despite all challenges, the Academy's scientific institutions maintain a high level of research and continue to work effectively. At the same time, the NAS of Ukraine faces a number of important tasks that require consolidated efforts. He thanked the participants for the frank and substantive discussion, emphasizing that the proposals and comments expressed during the session will be taken into account in the further work of the Academy's Presidium.
Photo: Academmedia
