Azarov runs for the Russian Academy of Sciences, although he has a zero Hirsch index
3 April 2025 07:16
Mykola Azarov, an ally of Viktor Yanukovych and former Prime Minister of Ukraine, is running for election to the Russian Academy of Sciences, although he has a zero Hirsch index, a key indicator of the quality of a scientist. This is reported by the T-Invariant resource, "Komersant Ukrainian" informs
The Russian Academy of Sciences is preparing for the election of academics and corresponding members. The website of the scientific electronic library elibrary has published the scientometric indicators of all candidates for RAS members who are registered for the 2025 elections.
“It is hard to remember when it has ever happened that scientists with a Hirsch index of zero ran for academics. However, this is exactly the indicator (according to the RSCI core) of the candidate in the field of “mining sciences” Mykola Azarov, the former Prime Minister of Ukraine,” the statement said.
Azarov used to be a corresponding member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, but in 2022 he was expelled from the institution. Therefore, he is now planning to run for the Russian Academy of Sciences in the field of mining sciences.
T-Invariant studied the scientometric indicators of all candidates for the Russian Academy of Sciences and found that Azarov has no scientific publications at all.
There was also no information about Azarov in the Scopus database, which tracks the citation of scientific articles.
“Azarov is a co-founder of the Party of Regions who worked in the government of Viktor Yanukovych. Azarov was a corresponding member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU). in 2022, he was expelled from the NAS. It was not possible to find information about him in the Scopus database,” the statement said.
What is known about Azarov
After the Revolution of Dignity, Mykola Azarov left Ukraine and is currently in Russia. Since 2014, he has been on the SBU’s wanted list.
In January 2024, law enforcement officers sent an indictment to the court in a case involving Azarov’s information work in favor of Russia.
In particular, in videos on Youtube and Russian media portals, Azarov justifies Russia’s armed aggression and occupation of part of Ukraine. He calls the events in Bucha a “fake”, calls for denazification and a violent change of the Ukrainian government, and assures that Putin’s special operation saved Donetsk from capture, “preventing this tragedy”.
Azarov faces up to 15 years in prison on the charges.
It should be noted that this is not the first case against Azarov. In September 2023, an indictment against him and former President Viktor Yanukovych for the Kharkiv agreements was sent to court. By this document, in 2010, officials extended the stay of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Ukraine for 25 years.
