We, the members of the International Advisory Committee (IAC) of the International Series on Recent Progress in Many-body Theories strongly condemn the brutal Russian invasion of Ukraine, an independent and sovereign country. We are gravely concerned about the impact of this violation of one of the most fundamental norms of international law that prohibits the use or threat of force by one state against another. In clear violation of such international law, the Russian government’s decision will have drastic and negative consequences that are difficult to foresee, including on the development of the scientific cooperation between nations. We decry any such threats to international cooperation in science that are a force for good in this world. Therefore, the IAC calls on the entire scientific community and all citizens working in physics and beyond, to be uncompromising in their protest and to take active measures against the ongoing violence of the Russian army in Ukraine.
The IAC expresses its deepest sympathy and support for the suffering Ukrainian people who find themselves in an unwanted and tragic situation in which not only their basic freedoms but also their very lives are threatened by the armed intervention of a foreign army. We stand in solidarity with them. The IAC also sympathizes with and supports the Russian scientists and other citizens who refute the aggression of their government and suffer similarly from not being able to express freely their disagreement in their own homeland. We stand in solidarity with them too. The IAC declares its support for the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights for all people and calls for a swift halt to hostilities and a peaceful end to this crisis.
The IAC also decries the Russian military operations upon or near nuclear facilities in Ukraine. Nuclear facilities contain highly radioactive nuclear material. Attacks upon or close to any nuclear facility could result in direct damage to its safety systems or indirect damage to its support systems. Such combat risks the release of radioactive material and potential danger to millions of people. The IAC strongly supports the International Atomic Energy Agency and its Director General’s call for “restraint from all measures or actions that could jeopardize the security of nuclear and other radioactive material, and the safe operation of any nuclear facilities in Ukraine.”