The article adopts an interpretive approach to explore Russian soft power as a discourse that has emerged in response to Joseph Nye's hegemonic narrative of soft power. Russian elites are drawn to soft power for status and influence in the international system. Their discourse is influenced by Russia's dual great power identity shaped by a ‘love–hate’ relationship with the West. When Russia fails to meet the hegemonic criteria for soft power and recognition, it resorts to a countervailing discourse that claims soft power and great power status in opposition to the West and its hegemonic discourse.
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