Two prominent newcomers to the ITER Council: Myeun Kwon, the former director of KSTAR and newly appointed president of the National Korean Fusion Research Institute and Jiangang Li, director-general of the Chinese Academy Institute of Plasma Physics, China's leading fusion scientist.
Given the circumstances that followed the Fukushima earthquake, "the ITER budget is under strong pressure," said Nubuo Fujishima, the head of the Japanese delegation and director-general for International Affairs at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).
By sending 15 delegates to the ITER Council, the Chinese wanted "to underline the importance of the project to our nation," reported Luo Delong, head of the Chinese Domestic Agency.
"The success of fusion energy is not just to the benefit of the seven ITER Members, but to humankind," said Sung Kwang Yang (second from left), director-general of the Korean Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, in his opening statement.
"I believe that there has been what we call a sea of change in ITER." Bill Brinkman (centre) with his colleagues from the US delegation, Ed Synakowski (left) and John Glowienka.
Taking the opportunity for a trilateral meeting during a closed session: Frank Briscoe, head of the European Domestic Agency "Fusion for Energy," ITER Deputy Director-General Rem Haange and Ned Sauthoff, head of the US ITER Project Office.
DG Motojima thanking Vladimir Vlasenkov, the deputy head of the Russian Domestic Agency and the Chairman of the Contact Persons Working Group, who came to the end of his term at this ITER Council meeting .
Once upon a time...those two gentlemen triggered the start of the ITER project: Evgeny Velikhov (Russia) and Michael Roberts (USA). Following their advice, Soviet Secretary-General Mikhaïl Gorbachev and US President Ronald Reagan met at the Geneva Superpower Summit in November 1985 to agree on an international effort to develop fusion energy... "as an inexhaustible source of energy for the benefit of mankind."
VIP tourists on the ITER construction site: CAO Jianlin, vice-minister of the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology, who made it back in time for the tour, and Igor Borovkov, head of "Apparatus" within the government of the Russian Federation.
Taking the chance to personally say goodbye to the Council Chair: Bernard Bigot (left), CEA Chairman and High Representative for the Implementation of the ITER project in France.
