Abstract. The aspects of Russia's international scientific cooperation are analyzed in the article from viewpoint of quality and quantity. The upscale of disciplinary and geographical frameworks of international cooperation, development of new interaction instruments and forms are documented. However, at ministerial level, there is still no sufficiently distinct stance on national priorities in the scientific and innovative development, and thus on priorities in the international cooperation sphere. The latter cannot develop beyond a broader economic and political context, and its success depends on what domestic conditions are created to perform the exploratory activity.