By the decision of the Presidium of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, a team of Belarusian and Siberian scientists has been awarded the Academician V.A.Koptyug Prize for 2017 for the series of research works on investigation of the fundamental features of laser generation of trivalent europium ions in anisotropic crystalline matrices of binary molybdates and tungstates.

From the Belarusian side, there are two representatives of the NASB B.I.Stepanov Institute of Physics, namely Valentin A. Orlovich, Academician of the NAS of Belarus, and Vladimir I. Dashkevich, Candidate of Physics and Mathematics; and two representatives of the Belarusian National Technical University, namely Nikolai V.Kuleshov, Doctor of Physics and Mathematics, and Viktor E. Kisel, Candidate of Physics and Mathematics.

The prize is named after Valentin A. Koptyug (1931–1997), an outstanding scientist, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vice President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Chairman of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Foreign Member of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, and Lenin Prize Laureate. It was established in 1998 to encourage researchers from the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation to achieve outstanding results in carrying out joint scientific research projects within the interstate programs, as well as for joint scientific works of great scientific and practical importance.

The prize (one) is awarded annually, in turn by the NASB and SB RAS Presidiums. This year, the competition was held by the Siberian Branch of the RAS.