The participants of the conversation discuss the issues concerning social, economic and political processes observed in Russia and China. They discuss how the pace and direction of the development depend on the national character and compare the tendencies towards unification and autonomization in different regions of the world. The modernization process in China is also featured.

The article studies the forms of interaction, gaps and intercrossing between the paradigms of East and West. Interpretation of the dichotomy as a model and value of culture and as a significant component of the worldview is presented in the article as a process of combination of cultural norms within the Whole. The idea of ‘transmutation contact’ is proposed for the discussion of peculiarities of the notion East-West. The mobility of borders and the ambiguity of the notion East-West predetermine different discourses of the discussion in the spaces of rational-irrational, tradition-nontradition, enlightenment and barbarism. It can be explained by the fact that the East-West dichotomy is integrated in the universe, the microspace and macrospace.

The discussion is focused on various aspects of interrelations between East and West. Its participants discuss the problems of the increasing tourist flows from China and the specific characteristics of Chinese tourists. The future development of tourism in the Baikal region is formulated, and the peculiarities of ethno tourism and its prospects are discussed.