Moscow - Russia's grandiose scheme to build a Las Vegas from scratch in 18 months is turning into a sour bet because of the sinking global economy. The plan calls for shutting down dozens of casinos in Moscow and St. Petersburg by July 1 and moving big-city gambling to four far-flung reaches of Russia, including building an entire new city along the Azov Sea. "It's just not going anywhere fast," says Joseph Weinert of Spectrum Gaming Group, a U.S. firm that advised on developing one of the resorts.