Authors

Vassily Klimentov¹;  ¹ University of Zurich, Switzerland

Discussion

The article explores the enduring weight of the Cold War in the discourse of Russian political elites in the 21st century. It does so at two levels. First, it quantitatively traces the occurrence of words, phrases, and references pertaining to the Cold War in the public discourse of Russian presidents Vladimir Putin (2000-2008, 2012-present) and Dmitry Medvedev (2008-2012). The article also shows how some Cold War-era references and phrases have changed in meaning to sometimes describe the new reality of the 21st century. Second, the article analyses, at a more qualitative level, the occurrence of Cold War references and phrases in the discourse of other Russian officials and ideological entrepreneurs supporting the authorities, including as part of the Izborsk and Valdai clubs. Based on that analysis, the article makes two inter-related arguments. Russian presidents, especially Putin, have been reluctant to frequently talk of the Cold War or suggest that Russia was in a “new Cold War” with the United States. References to the Cold War in Russian presidential discourse have been subtle and related to elements legitimising Russia’s great power status, such as its nuclear power or UN Security Council seat, that are anchored in the Cold War period. The expression “Cold War” itself has, however, been conspicuously absent from Putin and Medvedev’s public discourses. At the same time, various experts and ideologues close to the regime have been prolix at engaging the idea of the “New Cold War” and openly discussing that either the Cold War with the West had never ended, or that it has always been ongoing in different forms since before Soviet times. The article argues that such a division of labour among Russian political elites has long allowed Russia’s leaders to speak to different constituencies at home – ones open to collaboration with the West and ones more strongly nationalistic. It suggests that, following the invasion of Ukraine, that division may have lost some of its relevance for Putin, leading to him more readily engaging the idea of the “new Cold War” with the West.