Narrating spheres of influence : An analysis of Russian and Chinese strategic narratives

Abstract: This thesis compares the projection of strategic narratives in Chinese and Russian state media narratives in their pursuit of spheres of influence. Previous research about spheres of influence have sought to explain why and how spheres of influence are maintained and under what circumstances one’s sphere is accepted or rejected by external great powers. Arguing that China and Russia seek power projection through various means, the aim of this thesis is to broaden the constructivist understanding of how spheres of influence are pursued by authoritarian states. This is done by bridging the concept of spheres of influence with research on strategic narratives, accounting for the communicative power used by Russia and China to legitimize each other’s spheres. Using a framework inspired by Somers (1994), news articles published by Chinese Global Times in 2014 and 2022 and by Russian Sputnik and RT in 2020-2022 are analyzed. The study found that Chinese and Russian state media project narratives that might strengthen each other’s and, by extension, their own sphere of influence. This is primarily done by narrating a new international order and by deploying antagonistic narratives.