Global Resentment. Chinese and Russian Narratives of International Order

Online seminar

Global Resentment investigates the role of China and Russia in global politics, treating each country as a distinct case study. Its central premise is that both China and Russia have long sought recognition within the Liberal International Order but have perceived themselves as being excluded from the dominant social group, consisting mainly of Western or pro-Western actors. This has gradually fuelled a deep-seated resentment in both China and Russia. Specifically, this book focuses on understanding the roots and cognitive dynamics associated with resentment, how this feeling is intertwined with issues of state identity, and how it is expressed through narrative. In doing so, it brings together scholarship on identity, status, and emotion from International Relations theory and Social Psychology. This advances an emotional and socially experiential understanding of global politics, compromising between raw power politics and socio-cognitive constructions. It demonstrates how resentment can lead to different outcomes, such as the intensification of assertive or even aggressive actions that reduce a state’s willingness to adhere to rules, but it can also lead to more productive goals aimed at satisfying identity-related needs. The exclusion of China and Russia from the in-group is not just seen as a political setback, but as a frustrating emotional experience from which they purposely seek redemption, striving to establish an alternative international order in which they can be socially recognised as great powers. The reimagination of the international order desired by both China and Russia is distinguished both by its rejection of liberal universalism and by its elevation of civilisational plurality. This includes acknowledging the different historical and cultural trajectories of various actors, such as China and Russia, as valid foundations for in-group inclusion and social recognition. The book’s innovation lies in showing that, once it has peaked, resentment can be channelled productively to strategically achieve social recognition.

The ANU China Seminar Series is supported by the Australian Centre on China in the World at ANU College of Asia and the Pacific.