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The Russia’s dream and idea in the 21st century

Karaganov S.A.,

HSE University, Moscow, Russia, skaraganov@hse.ru

elibrary_id: 105483 | ORCID: 0000-0003-1473-6249 | RESEARCHER_ID: K-6426-2015

Malyutin P.N.,

HSE University, Moscow, Russia, p.malyutin@hse.ru

elibrary_id: 1298059 | ORCID: 0009-0008-9114-833X | RESEARCHER_ID: NQF-7481-2025

Article received: 2025.05.02 15:50. Accepted: 2025.07.26 15:51


DOI: 10.17976/jpps/2025.04.09
EDN: UIRIIS

Rubric: DIXI!

For citation:

Karaganov S.A., Malyutin P.N. The Russia’s dream and idea in the 21st century. – Polis. Political Studies. 2025. No. 4. https://doi.org/10.17976/jpps/2025.04.09. EDN: UIRIIS (In Russ.)

This article was prepared as part of the Council for Foreign and Defense Policy’s (CFDP) project.

Abstract

This article was prepared as part of the Council for Foreign and Defense Policy’s (CFDP) project. The study’s aim is to justify the relevance of promoting an ideological foundation and consolidating principles of Russian statehood amid the global fluctuations of the 21st century. It also examines the causes and circumstances which became the reason of the weak promotion of nationbuilding projects relying on ideological constructs or their alternatives in post-Soviet Russia. The research is based on historical and qualitative methods. Among them historical retrospection, comparative analysis and situational analysis. The authors propose potential pillars for Russia’s ideological platform and emphasize that it is more appropriate to define and call this platform “Russia’s Dream and Idea”, because it represents a conceptual vision of the future and shows the directions in which the country can evolve. The authors note that “Russia’s Dream and Idea” does not impose universal moral guidelines for all Russian citizens. An exception is the prominence of traditional values and patriotism, which are deeply-rooted in the civic consciousness of Russians. The authors point out that these conceptual foundations may also serve as criteria for assessing the professional qualification of the nation’s personnel reserve of officials. The study contributes to the academic knowledge base on contemporary challenges in state-building and enriches the theoretical understanding of consolidating a multicultural state in the era of global instability. The text is based on interim results from the above mentioned project and constitutes a scientific approbation of the CFDP’s expert report on this topic. The demonstration of the report’s beta-version was timed to CFDP’s special session which unfolded on 25.05.2025.

Keywords

the Russia’s dream and idea, ideology, state identity, sovereignty, meritocratic elite, leadership democracy.

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