The tolerance and ability to smoothly admit borrowings are considered as attributive peculiarities of the Russian culture and the Russian language. Comparison of Confucianism’s fundamentals with corresponding principles of western ideology reveals essential differences between them. The cult of the past (the principle of xiao) and the idea of deep inequality of people (division into junzi and xiaoren) in the Confucian philosophy define the ideology of the architectural and town-planning field. Despite the fact that many construction principles had been established in China long before their European counterparts, in the modern and contemporary times they have slowed down the development of architecture of the region. The article makes a conclusion on mutual complementarity of the western and eastern approaches. The differences in basic principles not only hinder mutual understanding, but also provide prospects for joint development.