Iran Strengthens Its Position on the Global Scientific Stage

At the time, Turkey ranked ahead of Iran, but the two countries gradually entered into competition in scientific production. Azizi attributed Iran's subsequent progress to sustained efforts to develop human resources, expand specialized education and strengthen research activities, which gradually improved the country's scientific standing.

He said the upward trend continued, with Iran surpassing Turkey in scientific output around 2015. This progress continued in subsequent years, strengthening Iran's position in the region while Turkey moved to lower rankings.

Referring to changes in regional scientific performance, Azizi said the charts presented showed Iran's research growth and shifts in the rankings of countries across the region. He also highlighted Iran's scientific output in comparison with several European countries, as well as changes in Israel's position in recent years.

Addressing Iran's global scientific standing, Azizi said data presented in the charts placed the country 10th worldwide in scientific output in 2025, ahead of several European countries, including France.

An analysis of scientific production trends, he added, indicates that investments in training specialized human resources during the early years gradually translated into increased research output. Since around 2016, Iran's scientific production has accelerated, enabling the country to outperform Turkey and some European nations across certain indicators.

Azizi also pointed to India's substantial growth in scientific output in recent years, describing it as an indication that the international landscape of scientific competition continues to evolve.

Despite Iran's achievements, he warned that signs of stagnation had emerged in the country's scientific output in recent years, emphasizing the need to review national research policies and adopt more effective measures to maintain and improve Iran's scientific standing.

Azizi noted that Turkey had been narrowing the gap with Iran in terms of scientific publications in 2025. According to the figures he presented, the number of Iranian publications increased from approximately 718,000 in 2022 to 1.307 million in 2025. However, he said the overall pace of scientific growth had shown signs of stagnation in recent years.

He cautioned that similar trends could be emerging across other scientific disciplines and stressed the need for a thorough assessment of the measures required to reverse the slowdown. Countries such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia, he said, have also recorded substantial growth, with their scientific output reportedly doubling in some cases. This trend could pose a challenge to Iran's international scientific standing.

The head of the Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences and Metabolism also highlighted the presence of Iranian researchers on the list of the world's most highly cited scientists.

He said that in 2025, 12 Iranian scientists were among approximately 96,000 researchers worldwide included in the top 2% of the most-cited scientists. In 2026, four additional young Iranian researchers joined the list, bringing the total number of Iranian scientists represented to 16.

Iran has improved its global scientific standing over the past two decades, but its research output has recently shown signs of stagnation, according to a senior Iranian scientist.