Hype for the Future 53/284: Russian Imperialism

Background

Technically, Russia is supposed to be identified primarily as a European power. Even though most of the territory within Russia is correctly identified as Asian, the nation remains a nation of Slavic identity, which is, of course, firmly European by nature.

The True Story

Technically speaking, the story regarding the imperial nature of Russia is best understood by referring to the specific histories of Omsk, Tomsk, Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk, Chelyabinsk, Samara, Irkutsk, Yakutsk, Viadivostok, and numerous other locales in question. Not just is Central Asia often included within the circumstances, but Eastern Asia is also included, all the way out to Siberia and to part of the Diomede twins in the Russian Far East.

Hype for the Future 52O: Russia 🇷🇺 is a European Country

Background

Even though the vast majority of the Russian land area is located on the Asian side of the continental landmass, the vast majority of the population of Russia is located on the European side. With the power imbalance, confusion may often arise based on the distinction between geography and reality of transcontinental nations. Though Türkiye maintains a more obvious distinction between Europe and Asia, even the Caucasus and the Ural Mountains that define the line between Europe and Asia do not necessarily result in a cultural divide between the continental influences.

Although the cultural distinction between Europe and Asia has traditionally been utilized to maintain the status quo regarding historical injustices and the development of racism, the divide between Europe and Asia seems to be less obvious when referring to Russia, even though the cultural traits are quite distinct on either side. Not just are the cultural traits distinct throughout Russia, but the population density seems to decrease in the easterly direction, ultimately toward Siberia and Alaska, and to increase in the westerly direction, toward the more familiar names of Finland, Belarus, Ukraine, and overall European culture that Western society has identified with the “Old World” and dominant superpowers. Unfortunately, the idea of European domination, which has resulted in increasing bursts of Eurocentrism, has resulted in a distorted view of the divide between Europe and Asia, which often impacts the particular nations of Kazakhstan 🇰🇿, Georgia 🇬🇪, Armenia 🇦🇲, and Azerbaijan 🇦🇿—all firmly within the cultural orbit of Asia though not even the Caucasus can reasonably be considered the Middle East.