MOSCOW, April 22 (RIA Novosti), Daria Chernyshova - Russia needs a new large-scale project to unite people with a national idea, says a new Valdai Discussion Club's report titled National Identity and Russia's Future.
"Russia has always been a country of mega projects. Look at the construction of St Petersburg, or at the construction of Trans -Siberian railroad," said Igor Makarov, research fellow at National Research University-Higher School of Economics, and a co-author of the report.
"We have just finished the mega-project of Sochi, which despite several controversies proved to have a strong consolidation potential. But Sochi is over and we need to find a new project," he said, outlining the possible options. "It could be some new infrastructure projects, or Crimea, or the Eurasian Economic Union."
These options have a common drawback - they are not economically beneficial, Makarov said. "What we see as a viable option is the new development of Siberia and the Far East," Makarov said.
The project will strengthen ties with Asia including political and economic relations with the growing region.
"From the symbolic and philosophical point of view, the development of our eastern territories is a key step toward fulfilling Russia's historic mission as a bridge between Europe and Asia," the report says.
The Valdai International Discussion Club unites leading Russian and international experts in the history, politics, economics and international relations. Established in 2004, the Club seeks to foster a global dialogue about Russia and to provide an independent, unbiased, scholarly analysis of political, economic and social processes in Russia and the world.
