As we know—fortunately—this did not happen. We also remember the tremendous support offered by Polish citizens to the Ukrainian population during the first weeks of the invasion. The fourth anniversary of these events is approaching, and on this occasion we would like to describe the activities of the Polish Biochemical Society, an organisation deeply committed to Polish–Ukrainian scientific cooperation.
This cooperation began almost immediately after Ukraine regained independence. As a result of an understanding between the Polish Biochemical Society and the community of Lviv biochemists, the first Polish–Ukrainian Jakub Karol Parnas Conference was held in Lviv in 1996. The patron of the conference, Prof. Jakub Parnas, was Head of the Department of Medical Chemistry at the Jan Kazimierz University in Lviv from 1921 to 1941. He was one of the most distinguished Polish and European scientists. Thanks in part to his work, the Jan Kazimierz University in Lviv became a renowned centre of science. In the department he led, only scientific excellence mattered—not nationality, origin, or religion.
The idea of the Parnas Conferences — held every two years, alternating between Poland and Ukraine— was enthusiastically welcomed by both Biochemical Societies.
In Ukraine, the conferences were organised in Lviv, Kyiv, and Yalta in Crimea. In Poland, they took place in Gdańsk, Kraków, Warsaw, and Wrocław. They fostered not only the exchange of ideas but also closer personal acquaintance and the formation of friendships. Many conferences became the starting point for serious scientific collaborations or coordinated activities within the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS). As a result of this rapprochement, Prof. Serhiy Komisarenko, long-term President of the Ukrainian Biochemical Society, and Prof. Rostislav Stoika, organiser of the first conference, became Honorary Members of the Polish Biochemical Society. In turn, Prof. Jolanta Barańska and Prof. Andrzej Dżugaj, former Presidents of the Polish Biochemical Society, became Honorary Members of the Ukrainian Biochemical Society.
The last Parnas Conference was held in Kyiv in 2019. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, and in February 2022 Russia’s invasion of Ukraine resulted in war, making it impossible to continue the conference cycle. Nevertheless, the Polish Biochemical Society awarded Honorary Membership to Prof. Rostislav Stoika in 2023 during the Congress in Szczecin. The diploma was ceremonially presented at the Congress in Poznań in 2025. Prof. Stoika was the Lviv scientist who enthusiastically embraced the Polish proposal to organise the first Parnas Conference in Lviv. He was a strong advocate of continued links between Ukrainian and Polish biochemists. In recent years, when Parnas Conferences could not be held, the Polish Biochemical Society supported Ukrainian colleagues in travelling and in securing conditions for scientific work.
We would like to address organisations that maintain contacts with Ukrainian scientific communities and ask them to help publicise this cooperation. Let us create a “fashion for cooperation.” Supporting scientific collaboration is particularly important, as it forms the foundation of long-term relationships. Let us be proud of our ties, remembering that Ukrainians are fighting and shedding blood not only for their own freedom, but also for ours.
Finally, we appeal to the Ministry of Science to consider creating a dedicated scholarship programme enabling young scientists from Ukraine to participate in scientific conferences organised in Poland. Such support would not only help them maintain research activity under the dramatic conditions of war, but would also strengthen long-term Polish–Ukrainian cooperation, fostering integration between scientific communities and contributing to the creation of a shared European research space built on solidarity and openness.
Prof. Jolanta Barańska, President of the Polish Biochemical Society (1994–2005)
Prof. Andrzej Dżugaj, President of the Polish Biochemical Society (2008–2014)
Prof. Adam Szewczyk, President of the Polish Biochemical Society (since 2022)
Photo: Prof. J. Barańska and Prof. S. Komisarenko