At an essential level, Russians lack a sense of geography. That’s why they live in Russia, one of the least ‘geographical’ places on the face of the Earth. "Anti-geography" flows from those flat, ill-defined spaces the same way that water flows into a swamp. Let me expand on this theme because it is unclear, which is exactly what Russia did in its history: expanded because it was unclear!
"Where does our Russian land begin and that of our neighbours end? Not sure. Best annex them."Most countries exist within distinct geographical areas – France with its Alps, Pyrenees, and Rhine, Japan with its chain of islands, are classic examples. Where these don’t exist, problems occur and empires sometimes arise as solutions. The problem can also be observed on the civilizational level.
