Zakharova urged not to be led by memes and to look for culture in the deep

Along with the concept of "cultural code," terms such as "soft power," "narrative," and "projection" have firmly entered the lexicon, which do not consider culture in its true meaning. This was stated on June 5 by the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, at the session "Cultural Code as the basis of Identity: Russian Experience and Prospects" at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

"It's all about the fact that culture is not seen in its true meaning, solely as a tool or a set of tools. As a resource that can be conveniently packaged, projected, used, and then canceled. It's just unnecessary," the diplomat stressed.

Zakharova said that such a pragmatic view is limited because "culture is more than the sum of signs." According to her, the Russian tradition, based on both a scientific and a religious-philosophical approach, interprets culture as depth: soul, spirit and divinity.

"This is an invisible connection <...> with providence, with the Almighty. This is not a denial of gift and endowment, which is simply absent in the cultural decoding system. In which card will you write down "divine talent"? Not in any way," the official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs asked a rhetorical question.

She urged not to be led by "capacious, manic, extravagant memes and expressions", but to see the depth of concepts that cannot be canceled as unnecessary.

Read the meanings: books about patriotism, finance and psychology turned out to be in the top among children

The trends are related to school recommendations and increased anxiety, experts believe.

Earlier in the day, Steven Seagal, an American actor and special representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry for Russian-American humanitarian relations and common cultural and historical heritage, said that Russian culture surpasses the culture of other countries of the world. Serbian director and musician Emir Kusturica also said that the evolution of European culture is impossible without Russia.

Russian Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova said on June 4 that the revival of cultural exchanges between Moscow and Washington remains a constant task, provided equal and depoliticized cooperation. According to her, until recently, Russian and American cultural figures have implemented a large number of joint projects.