Initially the concept “Russian world” was introduced “as a peaceful reestablishment of Russia’s identity and its reconnection with its past and diasporas,” by Pyotr Shchedrovitsky and Yefim Ostrovsky in 1997. The expression “Russian world” appeared in Putin’s speeches in 2001. The concept became a political issue in 2005 after the Orange Revolution in Ukraine. At last, the formation of the “Russkiy Mir” Foundation in 2007 institutionalised this concept.
The idea that there are as many Russians (not necessarily ethnic Russians) living outside Russia as there are in Russia is a possible source of the revival of Russian power, nonetheless, it serves as the core of the concept of the “Russian world”.
Several basic dimensions of the concept “Russian world” can be defined: Geopolitical (with imperial ambitions), national Russian and the people of the former Soviet Union, religiously Orthodox and cultural (i.e., rooted in Russian culture, history, literature, and culturally Russian speaking). …
