On 28 May, 2025, the Institute of Oceanography (IO), Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), Nha Trang, hosted a conference entitled “VAST-FEB RAS joint marine expeditions: Roadmap 2018–2025: Scientific Achievements and Future Prospects”.

In the first part of the event, where preliminary results of the 9th joint expedition of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (FEB RAS) and the VAST aboard the R/V Akademik Oparin were considered, Dr. T.V. Malyarenko, the Head of the expedition, (G.B. Elyakov Pacific Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry (PIBOC) FEB RAS), and Dr. Nguyen Phi Uy Vu, the Head of the Vietnamese team (IO VAST), came out with their reports.

Elena Bizikashvili, a postgraduate student (A.V. Zhirmunsky National Scientific Center of Marine Biology (NSCMB), FEB RAS), delivered a presentation entitled “Lipidomics of marine organisms” as one of preliminary results from the research cruise No. 76 aboard the R/V Akademik Oparin.

The second session of the conference, held in a hybrid format, focused on achievements of the decade-long cooperation within the framework of joint FEB RAS–VAST expeditions. Dr. K.A. Lutaenko, the Deputy Director for International Cooperation, NSCMB FEB RAS, presented his report “A brief overview of IMB/NSCMB biodiversity research in Vietnam for the past 40 years”. The Institute of Marine Biology (IMB, now the NSCMB FEB RAS) has had a long history of fruitful cooperation with the VAST institutions in marine ecosystems research.

The scientific interaction between scientists from the Russian Far East and Vietnam dates back to 1980, when the first Agreement on Cooperation between the USSR Academy of Sciences and the National Centre for Scientific Research of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam was signed with the active support of Alexey V. Zhirmunsky (1980–1985). During this period, coastal ecosystems, including coral reefs and littoral zones, their biodiversity, and productivity, were extensively studied. The biochemistry and chemistry of marine organisms were investigated even at that early stage. Over the past 40 years, our bilateral cooperation has fluctuated in activity. The close collaboration between IMB FEB RAS (NSCMB FEB RAS) and Vietnamese scientists has resulted in over 200 scientific articles and several monographs published, including identification keys to reef-building corals in Vietnam.

At present, our cooperation is developed within joint projects and scientific laboratories, as well as through a number of memoranda of understanding. These cover a vast range of research areas such as marine biology, ecology, biochemistry, study of biodiversity and natural resources, and exchange of scientific staff.