Leiden University Student Repository

Janssen, Harold (2018)

The President's New Clothes: the Return of Eurasianism in Russia's Identity Politics

Bachelor thesis | International Studies (BA)

Through an extensive analysis of speeches and statements of President Vladimir Putin of the Russian federation, an ideological shift towards Eurasianism is assessed. By comparing Putin’s discourse with regard to Crimea, religion and what it means to be Russian with public opinion polls published by the Levada-Center, the contemporary place of identity in Russia is reconfigured. I propose a new ‘pick-and-mix’ type of Eurasianism, in which Russia’s uniqueness is established in political speeches and statements, but in which the reason for this special nature remains fluid. Public opinion and Putin’s discourse do not always line up with regard to the nature of Russian identity, showing how multiple narratives are colliding in the public sphere.

Eurasianism

Identity Politics

Discourse analysis

Public opinion

Author

Janssen, Harold

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

Specialisation

Russia & Eurasia

Supervisors

Robbe, Ksenia

ECTS Credits

15

Language

en