The perception of empire, for the eurasianists at the start of the twentieth century, corresponded to original considerations of a cultural order. This singularity was not so much due to of the fact of considering itself as an empire; Russia had never existed in the form of a Western-style Nation-State. The neo-eurasianist concept of empire presents a desire for the restoration of identity based on a form of nationalism that could be defined as hegemonic. The national political community could rediscover its lost glory via such a project, by reintroducing the notion of empire. The imperial tradition the neo-eurasianists found their ideas on is therefore based also, or even more so, on an outwardly political dimension. The term "near abroad" was first used at the end of 1993. It means that all the post-Soviet countries represent a "vital sphere of interest" whose links, human, historical and economic, justify a preponderant influence from Russia as heir of the USSR.