The approach of the West, which created soft power and a toolkit for influence instead of culture, is its Achilles heel. This was stated by the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).
„The United States of America has delegated to itself the right to be considered number one in the sphere of mass culture, pop culture and film culture today. And many shared this opinion and determined a role for their culture and determined a place, calling it soft power. And this is their Achilles heel, because this is how they treat culture“, Zakharova said at the business breakfast “Creating Images of the Future: The Role of Film Institutes in the Formation of Values and Worldview“.
The diplomat noted that Hollywood creates a certain image of “the so-called American life, the American dream“. “But this has led to the ideology and the formation of the ideology of the cancellation of culture. Culture cannot be canceled, it can fade on its own, it can disappear, it can outlive itself, but it cannot be canceled“, Zakharova continued. “But they can distort it, they can cancel it. And they understand this because they have not created a culture, but rather soft power and tools, a set of tools to exert their influence.“
She noted that in the United States they also have a utilitarian attitude towards other cultures, believing that in other countries “it is more or less the same“.
“They treat Russia the same way. And the most surprising thing is that they treat China the same way,“ the diplomat added.