Why did Russia conquer Siberia? - History Matters Reaction

Why did Russia conquer Siberia?

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[francis_p]

It is sometimes said that Moscow is the empire and Russia its colony. Just as the absence of physical barriers allow an invasion from either Europe or Mongolia to reach Moscow, so too does it allow Moscow to expand infinitely until it meets a resisting power. Such a power simply not exist to the East after the Mongols disbanded. Afterwards, Moscow imposed its colonial rule on the indigenous people and send its very own settlers in the form of political exiles.

Of course, that isn't a purely Moscovite thing. The story of expanding your borders just because you can is valid for most great powers throughout history.