"We also can cooperate, and we are thinking about that, in the field of artificial intelligence, in the field of mathematics," Brechignac said during a session of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow.
She noted that there were many avenues of cooperation between French and Russian scientists, within many available formats.
"In 2020, the International Congress of Mathematicians will be held in Saint Petersburg, and, of course, we must prepare for it," Brechignac added.
She also recalled the planned 2024 joint session on academic cooperation during the Cold War.
"This is important because in an atmosphere of certain difficulties between politicians, scientific cooperation is especially important. And I know that during the Cold War there was a serious and deep scientific cooperation," the secretary elaborated.
France has a strong tradition of science and cultural diplomacy dating back to the Charles de Gaulle presidency, promoting research projects with other countries across the globe. The importance of non-political connection is becoming especially important amid the current state of Europe-Russia relations, which were damaged by the former's negative reaction to Crimea's reunification with Russia in 2014.
