10.05.2011

Cooperation agreement concluded in Brasília

In the presence of Germany’s Federal President Christian Wulff and Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff, the three directors of DESY, the European XFEL and the Brazilian synchrotron laboratory LNLS signed an agreement on future cooperation on 5 May in Brasília.

After the signing of the cooperation agreement in the President’s Palace, from left to right: José Roque da Silva, Director of the Laboratório Nacional de Luz Síncrotron (LNLS) in Campinas, Brazil; Christian Wulff, President of the Federal Republic of Germany; Dilma Rousseff, President of the Federal Republic of Brazil, Helmut Dosch and Massimo Altarelli. (Photo: DWIH São Paulo)

On occasion of the state visit of Federal President Christian Wulff, Brazil’s President Dilma Roussef invited for a press conference in the presidential palace (Palacio Planalto). In the course of this event, two research agreements were sealed, one of them between the Brazilian synchrotron laboratory LNLS, the European XFEL GmbH and DESY. In April, Brazil’s research minister and the LNLS director had visited DESY and initiated this agreement.

DESY director Helmut Dosch believes that this cooperation with South America fits perfectly into the future prospects of both Northern German research centres: “Brazil’s science system makes considerable progress. With the national synchrotron radiation source SIRIUS, it will join the international league of top facilities. Brazil would be most welcome as a partner of the European XFEL.”

Also for President Christian Wulff, science was a major issue during his state visit. He said: “Our collaboration in the field of science has remarkably developed. The recently concluded German-Brazilian Year of Science, Technology and Innovation gave a new impetus to our scientific relations.”

President Roussef pointed out Brazil’s plans to create 75 000 international scholarships in the coming years for university students, 10 000 of them going to Germany. Thus, one of the first consequences of this trilateral agreement could be the admission of Brazilian students and junior scientists at DESY and the European XFEL.