Pedestrians pause to take in the towering gold spires of Russia’s latest export, sitting in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower. Tape still fences off the gleaming white complex that houses an Orthodox cathedral, cultural center and school.
Yet even before its inauguration Wednesday, the new $187 million Orthodox Spiritual and Cultural Center has provided the backdrop for high drama, underscoring geopolitical tensions, partisan sniping and the complicated relations among the Russian diaspora here.
‘Saint Vladimir’
Some see the complex as underscoring Russia’s spreading influence under its leader, Vladimir Putin, at a time of chilling relations between Moscow and the West.
In “Saint Vladimir,” …read more
Source: Voice of America
