The dream of empire is, indeed, the gulag that imprisons the Russian mind. Most Russians do not regard Europe’s approach to their country’s borders as a sign that they have, at long last, fully united with the civilization of which they are a part, but as a source of insecurity.
经过过所有这些划时代的变革之后，俄罗斯无法接受自己帝国地位的丧失。帝国梦实际上是禁锢俄罗斯人思想的牢笼。大多数俄罗斯人不把欧洲逼迫他们国家的边界当作是经过许久最终完全回归自己所属的文明的标志，而把它视为不安全之源。