Isn't Russia part of Western Civilization? Atleast I always thought so, especially now that they are running under capitalism.
The ambivalence of Russia-and its place in the world-is one of the subjects that writers have spilled so much ink on.
Gogol, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, among many others.
It seems like they still haven't resolved this issue.
I doubt that they will anytime in the near future.