Sonja Margolina on Russia's imperial strategy

Sonja Margolina warns that gushing oil wells and the resultant economic power are reviving Russia's vanished dreams of being a superpower. "The connection between natural resources and political influence, or more precisely between geography and power, are deeply engraved in Russia's political philosophy, which is older than its present power strategy. After Russia began its military rivalry with the Western powers in the early 18th century, geography became its most important instrument of power. The Russian rulers' sense of superiority with respect to Europe stemmed from their possession of vast expanses of land and created an ideology that not only elevated land to an essential component of the collective Russian identity, but allowed it to take on a metaphysical dimension."

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