Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly signed a decree to expel members of a science advisory board who pushed for reduced conflict with NATO.

According to Russian media outlet SM-News, Putin signed a decree to exclude four members of the Academy of Sciences from the Russian Federation Security Council’s science advisory board. The move took effect on March 28, in an apparent response to the release of a document signed by those members that recommended reducing the risk of conflict between Russia and NATO.

The scientists, identified by SM-News only as Nikitina, Panova, Rogova and Gromyko, were removed from the expert panel by the decree earlier this week, having joined the advisory board last May. Earlier this month, the four scientists all signed the document advising against conflict with NATO, which was released online on by the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Europe. 

Gromyko reportedly said in an online discussion about the document: "Diplomatic ways to resolve the security crisis in Ukraine/Europe: prospects for Russia, Europe, and the United States."

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